It's a Mystery
by Sunshinesque
Summary: "What're you doing here! And why are you...why are you naked!" "I could ask you the same question. Not that I mind though. Honestly, Evans, you should dress like that all the time." *Life is a mystery.* -LxJ-
1. Chapter 1

James.

Oh, James.

The name caused the weirdest of emotions to run through me. First, anger. I mean, who wouldn't feel anger toward the arrogant, bullying, big headed git?

Second, annoyance. Him and his stupid friends, the 'Marauders', causing so much mischief, and always calling each other by stupid nick names. Stupid stupid stupid.

Third, disbelief. He always managed to get the highest marks in class (not counting me, of course) without studying. How did he manage to ace every class when he surely didn't put nearly as much effort into his classes as he does to his pranks?

Fourth, fifth, and sixth…well, you see, these are the most confusing of them all. Envy, awe, and flattery. Envy at the way he seemed to be so good at everything without even trying. Awe at the way he was so…for lack of a better word…_cool. _Always quick with a smart retort, always keeping his composure, always carefree…

And then finally, the last and most complicated of them all, flattery. Even now, as I sit here on the couch in the common room, I can't help but smile. Out of all the girls at Hogwarts…all the blonde girls, all the chesty girls, all the girls literally _throwing _themselves at him…and he picked _me._ Lily Evans.

I found my cheeks growing considerably warmer as I thought of this. Six years of pining for my attention and asking me out everyday had really caused him to grow on me. However, I would never tell him that. No, it would just make his big head grow even bigger. Not that I mind his head, though. It really is quite handsome, along with that smirk of his and that beautiful scent of cologne and quidditch he always wore…

I stretched out lazily, my long, warm blue sweatpants and green tank top causing comfort and sleepiness. I was really getting too cozy down here. I shook my head, attempting to wake myself up- it was already nine, and I still had a Potions essay and Ancient Runes project to finish.

After dozing off nearly again within the next five minutes, I decided a nice, cold shower in the prefects bathroom would cause me to wake up and give me the extra energy boost needed to finish my homework.

In the two minutes it took for me to go upstairs, fetch my towel and nightclothes, and come back downstairs, I had nearly dozed off _another _two times. I needed to get to the bathroom quick.

I went to the enterance to the common room and peaked my head outside, searching for Filch- it was about twenty minutes past curfew. After watching the hallways for a particular patrolling cat, I crept into the dimly lit hallway and made my way upstairs.

As soon as my bare feet made contact with the cool, tile floors of the large, prefect bathroom, I breathed a sigh of relief. Making my way over to the girls changing rooms, I removed all clothing while yawning periodically, and wrapped a towel around my body while making my way to the showers again.

Hastily rubbing the sleep away from my eyes, I stepped out of the changing room and began to walk over to the showers when I heard a small gasp coming from another human.

I squeaked in surprise and opened my eyes hastily, searching the room. Soon, my eyes soaked in the appearance of someone in front of me.

A boy, no older than I was, stood in my line of vision, a towel being held around his waist-no doubt he had come to take a shower too. My eyes wandered further upward, but not before stopping on the boy's incredible abs. His physique was great; nice biceps, a lean, toned stomach, great bone structure…I breathed in this male's scent: cologne and quidditch. Wait a minute…

My eyes finally rested on this boy's face, and I almost dropped my towel in devastation.

"James?" I could practically feel my face turning into a cherry red as his eyes met mine in confusion and embarrassment. Well, that certainly woke me up.

"L-Lily? What're you doing her-" He stopped mid sentence as his eyes lowered to my body, his gaze wandering up and down it. The blush on my face increased, but more so from anger.

"What...what are you doing, stop that!" I snapped at him. His eyes wondered back to mine sheepishly. Huh. Weird, he was being shy. However, that did not stop my shrieks. "What are you doing here? And why are you…why are you naked?"

"I could ask you the same question." He said back, before his all familiar smirk played on his lips a moment later. And his arrogance was back. "Not that I mind, though. Honestly Evans, you should dress like that all the time."

I groaned in embarrassment, self-consciously pulling my towel tighter around me as I tried not to pay attention to his oh so _perfect _body.

"Shut up, Potter." I felt his eyes scan over my body once again before I finally regained some sense in my head.

"Can't you…can't you take a shower elsewhere? I really have some homework I need to do and I was so content on showing in _this _shower…" Well, it was true. This shower had the biggest assortment of shampoos and soap in the entire school. It was amazing to shower in here.

"You know, usually I'd put up an argument, seeing as I really fancy showering here too, but I can't say no to you when you're wearing _just _a towel. It'd be a very rude thing for a gentleman such as myself to do. So, be my guest. I'll go to the boys' dorm showers." He winked and began making his way back to the changing rooms to get his stuff. I watched his retreating figure, his perfectly muscled and sculpted back, moving away from me…Oh gosh. Snap out of it, Lily.

"What is wrong with you, Potter?" I inquire. He turns around once more before shrugging.

"It's a mystery."

* * *

Early the next morning, news of me and James' little…encounter…in the bathroom caused a bit of uproar in the Gryffindor house, more particularly from my friends and his friends.

"How could you not tell us that you saw the almighty James Potter wearing next to _nothing_?" roared my friend Violet in horror. Alice rolled her eyes teasingly while my other friend, Macy, just sat there with a silly look on her face.

"Um…Macy?" I snapped in front of her eyes, causing her to break out of whatever trance she was in, and look up coyly.

"Sorry, I was just wondering what Remus would have looked like wearing just a towel…" At the mention of these words, everyone in the dorm laughed before we made our way downstairs to the great hall.

"Honestly, Lily, James' little fan club is going to be all over this…" Alice said amusedly while we passed the first half of the Gryffindor table.

A low whistle erupted from one of the Gryffindors sitting on one of the benches we had just passed. My friends and I all turned around, only to see a smirking Sirius, James, Remus, and Peter making their way over to us.

"Lily, darling," purred Sirius in his usual charming voice, "James has told us you've got _quite _the body under that uniform. Care to prove this theory to us men who are just _dying _to know?" Remus shifted uncomfortably while James smirked broadly, Peter's eager face appearing behind the three suave boys, trying to include himself.

"Well Sirius, _darling_," I repeated, my eyes narrowing at him, "I reckon that information is none of your business."

Sirius placed his hands in his pockets, a chuckle escaping his lips. "Well, Prongs, you've certainly picked a feisty one, haven't you?"

James shrugged, casually flicking his hair out of his eyes. It took all my willpower not to scream in a cuteness of the action. "What can I say? That's how I like my women."

Macy exchanged a small smile with Remus while Alice and Violet rolled their eyes and crossed their arms defensively.

"Come on, Lil, let's go find a seat somewhere _far _away from these gits." Violet said, drawling out the word 'far' as she flipped her long, raven colored hair over one shoulder and began walking away with Alice trailing her. Sirius eyed the girl's swaying hips and let out another low whistle.

"You've really got quite attractive friends, Lily darling. I'm sure Remus could agree with me on that one." He said, lightly nudging his friend with his shoulder and looking back and forth between him and Macy. Both reddened considerably before I let out a disgusted sound and dragged Macy to their other friends.

"Honestly," I said, angrily pouring herself a goblet of pumpkin juice, "That James Potter had better change his attitude if he _ever _wants me to even _consider_ going out with him. Girls, what should I do to get him back?"

"Well," started Violet, a mischief smile making it's way onto her face, "You could make him eat his own words." All three girls looked at their other friend with raised eyebrows. Violet, however, continued to smile. "Here's the plan-"

* * *

"James? Hey, James!" The plan was in play. I watched as Macy ran over to James, panting slightly. He, however, smiled friendlily at the girl.

"Hello, female Remus. What can I help you with today?" Macy ignored the comment and pointed to where I was. I pretended to look slightly flustered as I talked to my friend, Frank Longbottom. He was really quite the charmer, is I do say so myself. However, he was like a brother to me- he _was_, however, a great actor.

He caught on that the plan was beginning, and leaned in closer to me, whispering something in my ears. I giggled happily, and as soon as he backed away, I looked down, a stray lock of hair falling into my face. He quickly brushed it behind my ears, offering a brilliant smile as he did so.

I looked at James and Macy from the corner of my eyes. James was looking uptight, his fists clenched, and the corners of his mouth tugged downward in a frown.

"Frank, you see, I know he's just using her to make Alice jealous…poor Lily, she's liked him forever, her little heart will be broken if she finds out. Do something!" She added, seeing James' eyes narrow at Frank in detest.

James nodded furiously and made his way over to me.

"Oh, Lily, there you are babe." He said while swinging an arm around my waist, planting a quick peck on my cheek. I looked up, acting surprised-in reality, he had done this many times before, and we were all counting on him acting this way in accord to the plan- before glaring at Frank. "Longbottom."

"Potter." Frank's face glowered. I had to hide my smile, as he was playing his part perfectly. After a brief stare-off between them for a few moments, Frank gave up, offered a displeased "I'll see you later, Lily.", and began to leave the hallways. Not soon after he left, James took his arm from around my waist and crossed his arms across his chest.

"Bloody hell, Evans! Frank?"

I glared at him and huffed (rather, pretended to glare and huff) before saying "What's your problem, Potter? I can't talk to other guys?"

He raised an eyebrow at me, as if the answer was obvious. "Um, no."

"Protective much, James?"

"You…you just called me James."

I looked up seductively at him from beneath my long, dark eyelashes. "Yeah…"

"Why?" He inquired, nervously loosening his tie from around his shirt.

I tilted my head slightly and allowed a small smile to grace my lips. "I kinda like the way it sounds…"

He looked clearly flustered for a moment before saying, "Y-You do?"

I nodded, raising a hand to grab the end of his tie and enticingly pull him closer to me. "Yeah, I do. I think it sounds kind of…sexy." I say, drawling out the word sexy.

His usual arrogant composure is gone as he swallows, his cheeks coloring slightly, and says in a low whisper, "Really?"

"Really…" My fingers trace up his chest, tauntingly tugging at his collar before resting it on the back of his neck. He gulps, and I can't help but hide a small smile as I see the effect I have on him.

My other arm slowly drapes over his shoulder, and before I know it, his two arms are pressed up to the wall behind me, cornering me. All according to plan.

"L-Lily…" He says, I can hear the longing and desire behind his voice. I bring my lips closer to his, so that they just barely ghost over his own. I can feel his breath on my lips, taste the cool mint, smell his scent of cologne and quidditch, and will myself to follow the plan and not give into him like I _so _want to.

"James…" As I speak, my lips barely brush over his. I can feel his breath becoming more and more rigid as the temptation of me lingers this close to him. Then, before I can stop myself, I smirk and say "sucker."

I suddenly pull back, a triumphant smile on my face, as he opens his eyes. "W…What?"

My smile broadens as I see the confusion on his face. "James Potter, you really think you can get away with telling everyone about our little scenario without consequences?" I look behind him and see Sirius, Remus, and Peter, all jaws dropped, and Macy laughing while Alice and Violet shared a high five. There are not the only ones watching, though- everyone in the hall has stopped to watch me toying with the infamous, cool, suave James Potter.

"There is nothing I do better than revenge. Isn't payback sweet, James?" The first time ever saying his name nearly a minute ago, and suddenly, I couldn't help myself from saying it again. It leaves such a better taste in my mouth than the name 'Potter'.

Suddenly, everyone is smirking, whistling, and cheering as I leave the still breathless James Potter behind me, joining my friends as we make our way to potions class. I can help but add the casual sway of femininity to my hips as I walk, wanting to torture James Potter more than I already had.

"Lily, darling, that was so unlike you. You really put on a show for everyone; I reckon James is still standing there with his mouth dropped to the floor in shock. I give you major props." I turned around to face Sirius, his face slightly colored. Huh. Funny. Did I do that?

"T-Thanks," I say shyly as I tuck a piece of long auburn hair behind one of my ears.

He smirks. "No problem."

* * *

Word of my hold over James Potter had spread throughout the school, causing even more uproar in the fact that there was finally a girl who ickle little Jamesie was speechless when with.

Now that I thought about it, I hadn't seen him for the rest of the day, actually. He was absent from Potions and Transfiguration, but had showed up for the DADA lesson before vanishing again. I, to say the least, was worried. Had I caused that? Certainly not. He was just too embarrassed by his bruised ego to show his face. Yeah, that was it. He wasn't mourning over me. No, James Potter didn't mourn over girls.

…Right. He doesn't mourn. Get over yourself, Lily, he's fine.

After a nice little study session in the library, at ten before eight, I had decided to make my way back to the common room so as I did not miss curfew. I neatly organized all my pencils and quills into my book bag before swinging it over one shoulder and beginning to walk back to the Gryffindor tower.

As thoughts of all the homework I still had to accomplish filled my head, I groaned in frustration. No soon than the sound escaped my lips, I felt a hand grab my upper arm. I made a small noise as I dropped my book bag and was furiously pulled into a empty classroom that was dimly lit. I looked up to see who my kidnapper was only to find…Potter?

"Potter, what're you-" And then, before I can finish my sentence, his lips are on mine, and he's kissing me with such intensity and passion that I gasp in surprise, opening my mouth. He takes the opportunity to plunge his tongue into ot, and I can't help but kiss him back and smile as I discover he tastes just as I always thought he would taste. A pool of heat forms in my stomach, filling me up, enveloping me in warmth, as I wrap my arms around his neck, his hands resting on my lower back.

And then suddenly, the warmth is gone, and I force my eyes open to see James Potter smirking down at me.

"No one seduces James Potter without letting him get a little enjoyment out of it." And then, just like that, he sticks his hands into his pockets and walks out of the room, which I have identified at the Charms classroom.

I stand there, breathless for a moment, before angrily picking up my book bag and running after him.

"T-That's not fair!" I say madly while stomping my foot like a child. He, acting like nothing had just happened, briefly turns around with a raised eyebrow.

"How so?"

"How so? Because…because I was winning, and now…now I have to one-up you again, and…and why did you stop?" I can't help myself from asking the question as his taste lingers on my tongue and my body aches for him to touch it again. He smirks before continuing to walk away.

"It's a mystery."

_**a/n oh, little Jamsie(: **_

_**if any of you had noticed, I had partially gotten the seduce scene from the American movie 'the ugly truth'. Great movie, I suggest it to anyone.**_

_**Read and review, please! First hp fanfic ever, I'd really like feed back, thank youu!(:**_


	2. Chapter 2

"Wait wait wait wait…he snogged you?" After replaying the last few moments to my friends (a deep blush on my face, might I add), they had all been, as well as I had been, shocked.

"Well, er…yeah."

Silence.

Awkward.

"Well…" began Violet, her cheeks coloring a bit as she looked up from beneath her dark bangs. A smile grew on her face. "Is he a good snogger or what?"

Macy and Alice burst into a fit of giggles at Violet's unnecessary comment.

"Come on, Lil, tell us." Alice asked, crossing her arms and raising an eyebrow, though she already knew what the answer would be.

"Um…I don't know…" When my face had turned into a beet red, my friends laughed once more.

"We'll take that as a yes! Now, here's the problem," Violet started, crawling into her bed, "How are you going to top James?"

All the girls sat quietly, thinking, until Macy snapped her fingers. "I think I've got just the thing…"

* * *

"You did what?" Remus choked out, harshly swallowing down a mouthful of pumpkin juice. James smirked proudly while Sirius grew a smile on his face.

"Damn, mate. Have to admit, I'm proud of you. My little Prongs is growing up. Finally got himself a girl."

James scoffed. "Sirius, I've had more girlfriends than you."

Sirius shook his head at James, casually shrugging his shoulders. "Ahh, but see, I've dated more upper classmen than you. I think that should count for more."

Just as James was about to argue, Sirius' eyes grew larger before smirking at something behind James. See, that was where I came in.

"Hello, Jamesie. How did you sleep?" I asked while sitting on the boys' lap, wrapping my arms around his neck as seductive smile played on my lips. I saw Remus, Sirius, and Peter give him approving nods while Frank, who was sitting diagonal to them, let out a low whistle.

James gave them all an I-told-you-so look before turning back around to face me. "Good morning, my lovely Lily." I inwardly rolled my eyes at the cliché name before glancing quickly at Alice. She winked in my direction, then started to walk over to Frank, taking a seat across from him (as it just so happens, that seat was right next to where James and I were sitting).

"James." I said, trying to divert his attention away from Alice. Oh, and how marvelous of an affect my voice calling his name had on him. He quickly focused on me, his eyes sparkling with a sort of adoration.

"Yes?"

"I just wanted to say that last night was…" As I spoke, I leaned forward so that my lips were right next to his ear. In reality, I was giving Alice a look over his shoulder. She successful caught my eye and pulled out a tiny vile from her inner pocket- Veritaserum**.**

She poured it into his goblet of juice and then put it back into her pocket, quickly bidding good bye to Frank before motioning to me that she was done.

"…Brilliant." I finished before getting up and winking at James, whose face was a lovely shade of pink at that point. I followed Alice, walking towards the other end of the table, before Potter called to me.

"Lily, why don't I just make this official, hm?" I gave him a questioning look before he walked over closer to me, picking up my hand and placing a delicate kiss on it. "Go out with me?" He murmured, smirking.

It was now my time to smirk. I lightly pulled my hand away from his and winked once more. "No thanks."

You would have thought that after all these years, the black haired boy standing in front of me would have gotten used to my constant rejection. However, the shock and hurt on his face came as a surprise to me.

"…no?"

Before I could say anything more, Alice was pulling me away, toward the other end of the Gryffindor table.

"Lils, what are you doing! Stick to the plan! I saw your face; you almost gave into that arrogant git! You're lucky I stepped in, or the whole plan would have been ruined."

I shook my head. She was right. I needed to teach Potter a lesson.

Right…

"Lily?" I hear a feminine voice calling my name, and I turn around to see Alexandra Smith, a Ravenclaw in my year, walking over to me.

"What is it?"

"Um…" as a light pink tinge crept up on her cheeks, I suddenly understand why she has approached me. "Are you and James a…a thing?" How could I have forgotten? James and Alexandra had gone out just over a month ago. It was painfully obvious that she was still incredibly into him.

"What? No, of course not." Alexandra starred at her shoes for a moment before looking up.

"I just thought that maybe, you know, he ditched me because he took a fancy to you. Do you reckon there's another reason? Should I ask him about it?" I momentarily contemplated it before Violet stepped in.

"Yes, you should. I heard James say to Sirius that he was going to be completely honest with everyone today. If you want the truth, than today's the day." Alexandra nodded before bustling back over to her table to repeat everything the dark haired beauty in front of me to her friends, most likely. I whipped my head around so as to give Violet a look of horror.

"Vi! That's awful! You know he'll give her the real reason he broke it off with her, and knowing him, it'll be something dreadful."

"Exactly. James isn't aware of the Veritaserum in his system right now, so he'll tell the truth to any question anyone asks him. Word will spread of his 'honesty' today, which most likely means a lot of girls will be asking him questions…which also means he could get into _serious _trouble with some of them."

"What do you mean?" I asked, one eyebrow rising slightly. Just as I said this, however, a loud slap echoed throughout the Great Hall. All four of us turned our attention toward the northern end of the Gryffindor table, where the Ravenclaw girl I had just been talking to before stood with her hand raised, while James' head was forced to the side, a red hand print on his face.

"You insensitive jerk! You dumped me because I beat your test scores in Divination? How obnoxious! I'm sorry I ever dated you!" With that being said, she stomped away, leaving a very red James Potter behind her. I couldn't help but suppress a smile; he DID have it coming to him, after all…

"Prongs, what're you doing?" Sirius said to him, confusion evident on his face. James swallowed unsurely before speaking.

"I dunno, mate. One minute I was about to tell her that it was because she was too good for me, but then I couldn't resist from telling her the real reason dealing with Divination. You don't think…?"

"Veritaserum." Sirius and Remus answered at the same time, finishing off James' sentence.

"Come on," Remus began, standing up from the bench, "I have an antidote in my room from the last time Slughorn tried to interrogate us with it."

Sirius and James nodded before pushing back their bench and getting up. Peter quickly followed after them (much to the other Marauders' displeasure), and the four of them then made their way upstairs.

"James," started a seventh year girl with long, wavy blonde hair. James groaned and turned around to face her- he was so close, just one more hallway until he would be free of the awful potion…

"Hello, Olivia…how nice to see you."

"Oh, come off it James. Word is that you're being completely honest to everyone today. Is that correct?"

Before he could stop himself from doing so, the word 'yes' came out of his mouth. Olivia smiled, before stepping closer to him.

"Alright, so tell me this; why did you break it off with me last semester?" James could hear Remus mutter a barely audible 'oh no…' under his breath while James tried to keep his mouth shut. However, as much as he wanted to, he could not prevent his outburst.

"Actually, my friend told me that your boobs were fake and that you wore a pushup bra. Sorry Olivia, but I only do real ones. Also, I don't see how those help. After all, your breasts still do look rather small to me…" a second loud slap echoed through the hallway as Sirius doubled over, laughing, while Remus tried to suppress a grin.

James rubbed the sore spot on his cheek where both girls had slapped him. Then, a sudden realization dawned on him. "You guys don't think it was Lily and her friends who gave it to me to get back at me, right?" Sirius laughed even harder while Remus just rolled his eyes.

"What was your first guess, mate?"

"Shut it, Moony."

Between the ten minute walk from the hallway they were in to the boys' dorms, a series of incidents had happened: several slaps, a few tears, a bit of screaming, and one unfortunate kick to a certain seventh year boy's groin, to be more specific.

"Moony! Where is it?" James cried frantically, both of his cheeks extremely red and blotchy.

"Calm down, Prongs, it's right here." After a few moments of rummaging through his bag, Remus picked up a small vile filled with a blue liquid. James quickly grabbed it and downed it before sighing in contentment.

"Did it work?" Peter asked, at last catching up to them as he leaned against the bed post, panting from the running.

"I dunno. Ask me a question."

"What's your name?" Remus said slowly, casually raising an eyebrow.

"Severus Snape."

The boys all laughed while James smiled triumphantly, happily musing up the hair on the back of his head.

"Well, I have just gained extreme credibility points for Evans. She really is a sly, cheeky girl, eh?" James nodded, his face beginning to glower as he cracked his knuckles.

"Evans," he growled, "I have to get her back. All right, Marauders, listen up…"

* * *

Oh my god. He was looking this way.

I quickly ruffled my hair and flashed him a dazzling smile from where my seat was in the back of the History of Magic class. He starred blankly at me for a moment before smiling shyly and waving, a wave which I happily returned. He turned back around to face the front of the classroom, and I took the opportunity to gaze at him more. His deep, dark eyes, his full lips that would be wonderful to kiss…

"Lily, are you okay?" Alice asked me uncertainly. I nodded dreamily before continuing to gaze at the lovely boy that was only a few seats ahead of me. He was just so…_hot_. Him and his Marauder friends, all of them with the casual swag any men would kill to have. He really was just quite irresistible.

"We get that you're completely in love with James, but there's no need to stare at him all class, Lils…"

Um. What were they talking about? "James? Are you serious? No, I'm not starring at him. I'm staring at _Peter_." Even saying the name caused shivers to go up and down my back. I don't understand why I had never noticed him before- his dark eyes, full lips, red cheeks, light hair…he really was, arguably, the cutest of all the Marauders.

As I said the boy's name aloud, Alice began to choke on air- Macy nearly fainted- and Violet just sat there with a look of pure disgust on her face before she began to question me in realization.

"Lily, did you have anything to eat and drink before you came to class?" I thought back momentarily.

"Well, I did drink a goblet of apple juice before this period, although I reckon it was a bit stale, had a funny taste to it…" I began, not really seeing where my dark haired, beautiful friend was going. All in all, Sirius was right- all my friends were incredibly good looking. Violet, with her long, dark hair, straight bangs, and tan complexion. Alice, with her curvy body, light brown hair, and long legs. And lastly, Macy, with her past shoulder length golden, wavy hair, and startlingly pale, blue eyes. Really…Peter would never like me when I was always with such pretty girls…Lily Evans, the plain, pale girl with long, auburn hair and sharp, green eyes? There was no way…

"Love potion, I reckon." Macy declared, crossing her arms over her chest. Violet glared at the back of the four Marauders' heads before turning back toward me.

"Alright, come on, Lily. Let's go talk to Peter." I gasped happily in surprise before jumping out of my seat and following after Violet in the direction of their seats. Luckily, the teacher for this class was a ghost and didn't really pay attention much- if anyone wanted to get away with something during the school day, this would be the class to do it.

"Oi! Potter, Black, Lupin, and Pettigrew- you fancy seeing her off her rocker, then, do you?" What was Violet talking about? I had heard the mention of a love potion before…did she think that I was under one? Of course not, how absurd! I was in love with Peter; no potion could have caused that!

"Violet, no, that's not true! I'm in love with Peter, there's no love potion involved, I swear!" As soon as the words left my lips, Sirius and James burst into a fit of hushed laughter while Remus tried to hide a small smile forming at the corners of his lips. I didn't get it- why didn't anyone believe me?

"No, really!" I tried again, "He's quite handsome, and funny, and charming…" This, apparently, was the wrong thing to say to get them to change their minds, for after I had said this they began to laugh even harder.

"You think this is funny, do you? I could tell the professor, and then you'd get in trouble. I don't know if I remember correctly, but I do recall Dumbledore saying that if any of you got into any more trouble, you're parents would be coming to the school to talk to you…" I saw James and Sirius' bodies tense up- last time their parents came to the school, they were so severely embarrassed that they refused to come out of their dorms for the entire day after.

"Oh, come off it, 'Let. We're just having a laugh is all, no need to be a tattle tail." Sirius reached into his chest pocket and pulled out a vile of clear liquid-the antidote. Before glaring at him once more, she uncorked it, and next thing I knew, the liquid was pouring down my throat.

I choked in surprise-all my previous feelings of overwhelming infatuation were gone and replaced with an awful feeling of embarrassment at the way I had just acted toward- I gave a shudder- _Peter. _

"Potter, I swear I will get you back for this." I said while ignoring the look of disappointment on Peter's face. However, Potter just smiled- and it wasn't a smirk. It was a real, genuine smile that made his face light up in ecstasy and delight. His eyes shone with a sort of brightness, the hazel color of them suddenly seeming so much warmer than all the other times I had looked into them.

"Looking forward to it, Evans."

_**A/N I decided that since you guys ended up liking that one-shot, and many of you requested for a multi-chapter story in your reviews (thank you for those by the way, the really made my week)**__**, I'd give it a go. Pleas bear with me, I've never written a multi-chapter story for harry potter before. Actually, this is my first harry potter fic as I said last chapter, so…please continue to support me through this with reviews! **_

_**I'd like to personally thank all the people who reviewed last chapter, because it really did make me feel good about this piece of work. Thank you again!(: if I don't update soon, Happy Christmas, Hanukah, Cuanza, whatever you celebrate! Thank you again!**_


	3. Chapter 3

I watched James carefully as he put down his bag next to his seat in DADA, casually flicking the hair of his eyes before turning in his seat to start up a conversation with Sirius. I turned to my side to see Violet smirking at me.

"Ready for part I?" she whispered. I nodded, an evil smile growing on my face, before silently pulling out my wand and muttering the incantation '_accio bag'_.

The bag began to slowly make its way over to us, and as soon as it was in reaching distance, I quickly grabbed it and put it in the space of floor between Violet and I. I heard Macy and Alice whispering in the seats behind us, no doubt talking about the mastery of this plan, before I reached into my own bag to pull out the 'goods': loose pads, panty liners, and tampons.

I laughed maniacally to myself before shoving the feminine items into his bag, being careful to keep them at the top so that they would be easily spotted. "_Wingardium Leviosa_." I whispered, pointing at the bag. It rose into the air, just barely above the ground, and with a flick of my wand, was safely back in the same place that James had put it at the beginning of the class.

Violet's eyes gleamed before she asked in a hushed tone, "Can I _please _do the next move?" I leaned back in my seat while crossing my arms, my own voice coming out in an exhilarated whisper, "Be my guest."

"_Ventus_." She murmured. A gust of wind flew out from the tip of her wand, heading straight for the bag we had just previously messed with. The sudden gust of air caused the bag to fall over, spilling out the embarrassing containments inside. Everyone turned to look at the bag, then at James, who was looking extremely amused, and then back at the bag.

"Um…mate," whispered Lupin from next to him, "Why do you have, er…_that stuff_ in your bag?"

"Dunno," James said, raising an eyebrow. "I suppose I accidently grabbed Lucy's bag." When everyone in class gave him a look of confusion, he rolled his eyes and began to speak again. "We were snogging in a broom closet earlier today, and then had to rush to get to our next classes. I reckon because I was so focused on not being late, I grabbed her bag instead of my own. My mistake."

A few people laughed before the professor slapped a ruler on his desk. "As amusing as I find that, Mr. Potter, this is a class _not_ for the retelling of one's social life, but for the sole purpose of learning to defend yourself against You-know-who and his followers. You will be leaving this school in less than a year, and unless you'd like to be unprepared for the war going on outside these castle walls, I extremely recommend you listen to my lessons. Do I make myself clear?"

James smiled, a mischievous gleam in his eyes. "Yes, sir." As soon as the professor had turned around to continuing his writing on the board, James turned his head to face me.

_Nice try, _he mouthed before winking and turning back around in his seat. My mouth, which had already been open in shock, was now hanging even opener. I looked to my right to see Violet's expression identical to mine.

"How…what…" She sputtered out in awe. I shook my head, gazing unblinkingly at the back of his head.

"I have no idea."

"Dammit," groaned Alice from behind us. "Well, at least we still have parts II and III."

"That's right!" Macy whisper-shouted, "Just because he thought of a way to cover up that one, it doesn't mean he'll be able to handle all the other ones as easily!" I breathed in a sigh of relief; my friends were right.

"Okay, girls. Part II will be in action as soon as class gets out. Remember your positions- Macy, the great hall, Alice, the Gryffindor common room, Violet, downhill, by the lake, and I'll take the library." Everyone nodded enthusiastically, eagerly waiting the end of class to carry out the plan.

"Wait, just making sure, Vivian's in on the plan, right?" I nodded once more. Geez, hadn't I already explained all of this to them?

"Yes! Come on, the professor just dismissed us. Let's go and meet back in the great hall in half an hour. Break!" All three of us parted ways. I began to make my way to the library, going over everything that I was supposed to say in my head.

Once arriving there, I scoped out the room, looking for some sort of group of girls that were profoundly known for gossiping. In all honesty, it wasn't too hard, for almost immediately I spotted a fellow Gryffindor girl in my year talking with two Hufflepuffs and a Ravenclaw.

I made my way over to them, putting a sort of pout on my face. "Hello, everyone." All the girls turned at the sound of my voice and smiled at me before the Ravenclaw girl, Yolanda, found the frown on my face.

"What's wrong?" she asked. I sighed and crossed my arms, looking sympathetic.

"Well…promise you won't tell? It's a secret." If these girls were dogs (well…they _are, _technically speaking, dogs, if you count them as a certain word most people in our year would use to describe them), I'm sure all of their ears would have perked up at that sentence. Instead, they all exchanged glances before huddling in closer around me.

"You can trust us."

I pretended to look hesitant for a moment before deciding that the plan should be put in play now rather than later-the sooner the better, right?

"Well…Vivian was just telling me about how she thinks she might be pregnant." All the girls' jaws dropped as they leaned in closer.

"What?" one of the girls, Maggie, exclaimed in an appalled voice. "And who does she reckon the father is?"

I took another moment to look hesitant before saying in a low voice, "James Potter."

Blank expressions passed over the girls for a moment before Diane, a beautiful, dark skinned Hufflepuff, asked in a scandalized voice, "James? Didn't they brake up last term?"

"Apparently, they're still quite at it, regardless of the fact they aren't dating anymore." I said with a casual shrug of my shoulders.

"Wow." Maggie breathed. "Well," she began, "I still wanted to grab a quick bite before my next lesson, so I'll, uh, see you lot later!" She then ran off, no doubt about to share the rumor with the rest of the school. I let a small smile grace my lips as I muttered a fast good bye, parting ways with them as well. I walked over to a bookcase in the back, leaning my head against it.

"Part II, complete."

"Part II complete of what?"

I jumped at the sound of a low, amused, masculine voice. I turned around slowly, gulping, as I hoped, no, _prayed, _that it wasn't who I thought it was.

But, sadly, there was the handsome face of James Potter, with his sexy- er, appealing- glasses, teasing smirk, and boyishly chiseled face. I breathed in his intoxicating scent of cologne and quidditch and wondered if he knew that he smelt so, _so _excellent. He raised an eyebrow at me, leaning one hand casually next to my head against the bookcase, peering down at me. Huh, funny- wasn't he only an inch or two taller than me last year? He seemed now to be at _least_ a whole head taller than me, probably more.

"Um, nothing." He playfully rolled his eyes before a crooked smile crossed his lips. Damn. That smile was quite attractive…

"Come on, Evans, I'm not stupid. You're up to something, and I'm guessing that incredible fail of a prank this morning was part I of it. So, why don't you just tell me," he said, bringing his face closer to mine, "What are you planning?" Whoa, did it just get hot in here?

"That is none of your business, Potter." I said after taking a few calming breaths to slow down my heartbeat. Why was I suddenly feeling so dizzy? It was probably due to the fact that I had hadn't eaten lunch yet. Yeah, that was it…it had absolutely nothing to do with close distance between me and James at the moment. No, nothing at all.

He scoffed. "I believe it is my business, since I'm going to be on the receiving end of the prank." Dang. He had a point. "But I won't force it out of you. I actually am quite curious as to what you're planning, though I don't want to ruin the surprise. So, I guess I'll see you later." He said, removing his hand from the side of my head and taking a step backwards. He stood there for a moment, looking as if he were about to say something more, before he shook his head, chuckling, and walked away while putting his hands in his pockets.

I stayed there for a few moments, wondering why suddenly I was feeling so nauseous, before hurrying off to the Great Hall to search for my friends. Surprisingly enough, they were all there before me, sitting in the middle of the Gryffindor table while eating some Treacle Tart. I put a smile on my face and squared my shoulders before walking over to them.

"All go according to plan, girls?" Alice, Macy, and Violet nodded happily before moving down the bench a bit to give me some room.

"I can't wait 'til that rumor comes to James," Violet said, delicately dabbing her lips with a small, white handkerchief. We all nodded, although I still couldn't fight off the wave of heat that I had still been experiencing.

* * *

"Um…Prongs," Remus said, poking his friends shoulder. James turned around, catching a loose snitch in his hand one more time, before asking, "Yes?"

"Um…Rumor is that Vivian is pregnant, and word is that you're the father." James immediately stopped moving. He stayed there, on the couch in the common room, before turning his head to face the young man next to him.

"What did you say?"

"You very well heard me, James." Remus said. When one Marauder used another Marauder's real name, you knew that it was no moment to joke around.

"But…that's impossible!" James shouted in protest. Remus let out a sigh of relief.

"Thank God, Prongs. Glad to know you're still a virg-"

"I haven't slept with her for almost six months! There's no way she would just figure out now that she was pregnant! It's got to be someone else." James said, pondering over the information just given to him. Remus looked bewildered for a moment before he glared at his friend.

"Don't tell me you-"

"Listen, Moony. Just because you're waiting for marriage, it doesn't mean we all are." Remus' face turned a deep scarlet before he awkwardly coughed, breaking the uncomfortable silence that had filled the room.

"Well, um…I think we should probably get to class now, don't you thi-"

"LILY!"

"_That is the third time in the past minute that you've interrupted me_!" Remus shouted at James' random outburst.

James watched Remus careful for a moment before laughing to himself. "Guess your time of month is coming up, eh mate?" Remus slapped his forehead, groaning, before he shook his head and turned to James, deciding to ignore the comment.

"What do you mean 'Lily'?"

"I mean," started James, "that _she _made up that rumor…I see where she's going with these pranks. They all follow the same pattern, and that's to break my ego and reputation. Geez, she's really being low right now…" James said with an irritated expression. No sooner than the expression appeared on his face, however, another one had replaced it-delight.

"I'm so proud of her."

* * *

"I have an announcement to make, everyone!" I, along with the rest of the students in the Gryffindor common room, turned to the person who was speaking- James Potter. He stood on a chair, Sirius, Remus, and Peter all next to him (though standing on the floor), as he patiently waited for everyone to give them his attention.

"I'm sure some of you have heard that I've gotten Vivian pregnant, yeah? Don't be shy." A few murmurs and mutters of agreement went throughout the room. "That's what I thought," he said before putting his hands in his pockets and speaking again

"Well, I'd like you to all know that that information is incorrect. For those who know Vivian well, you'd know that she is actually currently dating Paul Arnolds, and that we haven't…er, that is to say, um…been, erm, _active, _for some time now, making that chronically impossible."

Frank whistled at James. "Dang, James, you dog, you." James laughed, ruffling that back of his head, before everyone went back to their activates (most of them beginning to gossip about the information that James had just given out) while he stepped down from the chairs.

I gaped at him before sharing a look with Violet and Alice-Macy was looking down at the floor currently, a thoughtful expression on her face.

"Well," I said, sighing and leaning back into the couch while slamming my eyes shut in annoyance, "He's done it again."

"Yes, I have. Hold the applause, Evans." I opened my eyes to see him looking down at me from behind the couch, a smug expression on his face. "Better luck next time, love." He then walked away, but not before Sirius childishly stuck his tongue out at me while Remus offered a slightly apologetic face.

"How mature, Sirius. Put that away, no one wants to see it." Violet stated calmly.

"Oh, but 'Let, darling," He said in a sing-song voice, "If I remember correctly, you were _extremely eager _to see it not so long ago." I couldn't help but laugh to myself from the comment-Sirius and Violet had gone out just under a year ago, and were, not surprisingly, the 'it' couple: both of them were considered to be the two 'it' people in our year, so when they had started to date, it had been the talk of the time. Well, that, and James and I being picked for head boy and girl (even thinking about that gave me a shudder-fortunately enough, we were only required to meet with each other once a month, which lessened the pain of it all).

"Please," She scoffed. "_You _were the eager one in that awful misfortune for a relationship. _You_ were practically _begging _for a shag not even a month into it." Lupin laughed, along with James, before Sirius shot them a glare, and they covered it with a few coughs.

"Well, Tatum," He said, calling her by her surname, "_You _were the one who agreed to it." And with that, he winked and was off. Violet rolled her eyes, crossing her arms over herself defensively.

"Don't tell me you…with _him_?" Macy asked with a sort of amusement in her voice. Violet's face turned scarlet before she coughed and flicked her hair over her shoulder.

"Yeah, well, I was stupid back then."

"That wasn't even a year ago." I pointed out, eyeing her suggestively.

"Oh, come off it, you lot. It's not like you've never…you know," She said, waving her hands awkwardly so as to avoid the word, "…with someone before? I mean honestly, we're all seventeen." I scratched the back of my head, somewhat uncomfortably. "Lily, what about Rob?"

"Well, yeah," I admitted sheepishly, "But we had been dating for almost two years at that point…_And _it was only one time. Plus, it's not like I slept with him a _month _into it," I said, giving her a pointed stare.

Violet just rolled her eyes. "What about you, Mace?" she shook her head, a blush appearing on her cheeks. She held up her hand, where a purity ring rested on one finger.

"Waiting until marriage."

"And you, Alice?"

She shrugged her shoulders. "Just waiting for the right guy to show up." After a somewhat discomfited silence, I decided to break it by standing up and brushing off my black, pleated, slight-above knee length shirt.

"Alright…well, part I and II are done. Now it's time for part III." I said in a newly found, dignified voice. This was going to be good. We had saved the best for last.

"Right. Hm, what time is it?" Alice asked. Macy glanced down at the watch on her wrist.

"Almost half past nine."

"Brilliant," I said. "We can start to get ready for bed early, so as to have a fresh start tomorrow. Agreed?"

Alice shrugged while getting up. "Eh, why not? Might as well be well rested for the quidditch match tomorrow."

All four of us made our way up the stone staircase and busted into the dorm we all shared, quickly changing into our pajamas and going to bed. The night passed extremely easily for me, and was filled with soft dreams of light music and a beautiful day of snowfall. Subconsciously, I'm sure that was actually a wish- it was already the tenth of December, and it hadn't snowed yet. Hopefully it would before we all got off for Christmas next week.

I woke up, lazily yawning, before checking the time-ten before eight. "Fantastic." I said while yawning noisily once more.

"Hey," I said while throwing my pillow at Violet, who groaned and pulled the covers up over her head.

"Whadyawan!" she yelled frustratingly at me.

"Get up, I don't know what to wear today."

"Lily, we're going to be in freezing weather, it won't matter what you're going to be wearing." Murmured Macy, who must have just awoken, for she was sitting up in bed and tiredly stretching her arms above her head.

"Yeah, but I still want to look good…" I muttered.

"Why don't you wear those dark jeans and that pretty coat you have, hm?" I thought for a moment before deciding that it was, overall, an extremely good choice. I leapt up and walked over to the closet I had unpacked all of the clothes from my trunk into at the beginning of the year. I pulled down a pair of dark blue jeans, quickly putting them on, before I put on a plain, tighter-fitting white v-neck and stepped into a pair of cute, brown ankle boots Violet had given to me.

Violet really was the fashionable one of the group- she was always wearing the designer named robes and accessories. She was a master of make up and hair, too. More than once, she had dressed everyone in the room for important occasions, such as the several dances they attended, significant dates, or times when they merely felt like looking pretty. However, despite the Mary Sue type of girl everyone believed her to be, she was, actually, quite more- she was genuine, honest, kind, smart, funny, and loyal to all of her friends. It was because of these qualities that I considered her to be my best friend. Don't get me wrong, I loved Macy and Alice, too, but Violet was the one I _really _connected with in first year.

Alice, however, was almost the exact opposite of Violet. She was a tomboy, down-to-earth, artsy type girl. She was on the quidditch team, too-in third year, she had successfully landed herself a spot on the team as a beater, and maintained that position for the rest of her years here. Alice and Violet were like in the some of their qualities-both of their hearts were in the right places. Alice, however, paid more attention to academics and extra curricular activates than Violet did.

Macy, as some people pointed out, was apparently the opposite of me-I, somewhat, had to agree with that. While I was outgoing, strong headed, confident, and most of the time, had low temperance, Macy was very shy, unsure of herself, cautious, and extremely patient. We both put academics first, though-that was one of the things we had in common.

"Hey, Lil, you coming?" Violet echoed from the doorway. Whoa, when did she even get ready? I looked around the room-Alice and Macy were gone, they must've already gone down to breakfast. Guess I spaced out for quite some time.

"Er, yeah…" I grabbed my grey pea coat, red and gold striped Gryffindor scarf, and grey crochet knit beanie before following my friend out of the room and down to the Great Hall.

"As much as I hate to admit it," I said while we made our way towards our seats at the far end of the table, "Potter's picked a good team this year. I'd love to see him get us another win as captain."

"Agreed." Violet said while we took our spots next Macy and Alice.

"How're you feeling, Alice?" I ask while watching as she ate her lunch hungrily. She stopped, swallowed, and rubbed her mouth, before smiling.

"Wonderful. I'm in the zone. Today's match against Slytherin should go beautifully, I think." She said while taking her shoulder length hair and tying it up in a high ponytail.

"Brilliant!" I said before clapping a hand on her back and grabbing an apple. "Why don't we head down there now, since you need to go change and warm up and everything? We can grab a good seat, too."

We all agreed and walked down to the quidditch pitch, happily reminiscing on the first time we had done this (Macy blushed uncontrollably as we mentioned this-she has almost fell into the lake, and Remus saved her. That was the exact moment she 'fell in love with him', as we often said to tease her) and wondering where the time had gone.

"Alright, I've got to go change. I hope to hear you lot cheering for me today!" Alice said while waving and walking into the girls' changing rooms. Violet, Macy, and I then continued our way over to the quidditch pitch, climbing up the stairs until we got to the highest level, and was then waved over to a few seats not so far away by Frank, Remus, and a nice Hufflepuff, Amos Diggory. I nudged Macy with my elbow, Violet suggestively winking at her, before we went over to them.

"Hello, Remus, Amos. Frank, are you hear to cheer on Alice? I'm sure she'll be delighted." The boy rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, a red tinge spreading up his neck. We all laughed before I took a seat next to Frank and Macy, who had sat right next to Remus (surprise, surprise)

We animatedly chatted for a few moments while everyone else arrived around us. Soon enough, the match was starting, and Tom Jordan was announcing the Slytherins as they came onto the field. With every name came a loud echo of boos from three out of four of the houses.

"And now," said Tom, pausing for dramatic effect, "Is your currently undefeated, first place Gryffindor team! Give it up for the beaters, Alice Prewett, Jeffery Dunbar, and Jack Abbot!" Everyone cheered loudly, although I believe the combination of Violet, Macy, Remus, Amos, Frank, and I were the loudest.

"Your seeker, Justin Weiss, and your keeper, Zachary Felton!" More loud cheers and whoops throughout the stadium.

"And lastly, your chasers, Jillian Thornton, Sirius Black, and-let's not forget the captain this year- James Potter!" I found myself spontaneously blushing as James swaggered out of the locker room, his broom casually over his shoulder, his robes blowing oh-so-slightly in the wind, and his signature smirk on his face. I cheered loudly with everyone else in the crowd, and for a moment-a random, weird, unexpected moment-imagined his lips on mine like they were only a week ago, and wondered if I would every get to experience that wonderful sensation again.

"Lily, you should have dressed warmer-your cheeks are already turning red from the cold!" Macy exclaimed. Oh, but if only she knew my cheeks weren't red from the cold, but from another cause…

After James and the Slytherin captain shook hands, the match began. It started off with Sirius stealing the quaffle from one of the Slytherin chasers and quickly passing it to James, who faked out the keeper and made the first goal of the game. I found myself cheering excitedly like all my fellow peers around me, and soon enough (with the double team work of Sirius and James and Jillian's constant fake-outs), we were leading with a tremendous score of 90-10.

Our keeper, Zachary Felton, was amazing in the goal. He saved almost everything. The one goal that was made should have been called as a foul, but Madame Hooch hadn't been looking at the time, so it had counted.

"And a great hit made by beater, Alice, and- oh, that's going to hurt in the morning, the bludger hit chaser Phillip Donnelly of Slytherin, and it looks as though his arm is in a terrible amount of pain right now. _Good job, Alice!"_ he yelled into his microphone before McGonagall sent him a stern look.

"And the Slytherin keeper makes a great save, and-and-did it…did it just start to snow?" Tom Jordan murmured in awe as he looked up into the sky. All of my friends and I looked up, too: sure enough, soft, white snowflakes were falling from the clouds, making everyone yell and cheer in glee.

"How great, first snow of the year! It seems to have momentarily distracted Slytherin seeker Gregory Grey, stupid bloke, don't play in the snow during a quidditch match, doesn't he-_AND THE SNITCH IS SPOTTED BY GRYFFINDOR SEEKER JUSTIN WEISS!" _Everyone turned to see Justin making a spectacular dive and lunge for a moving gold orb that was flying so fast it was almost invisible. The Slytherin seeker stopped at once, turning his head frantically and flying off with his broom after the Justin. However, it was too late-Justin had jumped off his broom (he was only about two feet off the ground at this point) and grabbed the snitch, hurtling to the ground in a protective ball, before quickly hopping to his feet and holding his hand high above his head to signify that he caught it.

"The match is over, with Gryffindor winning with…my, that's quite a lot of points, eh? Looks like Slytherin's out of the drawing for he house cup, not that anyone cares-" McGonagall shot him another look that went unnoticed by him, or by anyone, at that matter-everyone was already running onto the quidditch pitch to celebrate the enormous victory.

James was, currently, getting a great amounts of pats on the back, fist bumps, and hugs (from clinging, attention seeking girl and one-armed 'man' hugs from a few Gryffindor males) for picking such a great team. It was actually quite funny, I mused wordlessly while Violet, Macy, Frank, Remus, Amos, and I made our way to the quidditch pitch. Weiss, who had caught the snitch, was getting no attention at the time-it was, in fact, James, who was getting most of it (though some was shared with Sirius) for being the captain.

"Great game, Alice!" I said, running over to her and throwing my arms over her shoulders, strangling her in a hug. She laughed and hugged back with just as much enthusiasm.

"You were amazing, Alice." Frank said while shyly rubbing the back of his neck. Alice let go of me and looked up at him-her eyes shone with confidence and radiated with enjoyment. Then, with almost to no warning what-so-ever, she grabbed the flaps of his coat, pushing herself upward so that her mouth met his in spontaneously perfect kiss.

He stumbled backwards for a moment before softly resting his hands on her waist and closing his eyes, his cheeks turning into a brilliant shade of red. I couldn't help but cheer, as my zeal for the game had not quite worn off yet-apparently the other felt the same too, because in that ten-second long kiss was filled with loud whoops, low whistles, and extremely noisy cheers.

"Hey, Evans, do I get celebratory kiss like that, too?" James said, suddenly appearing with Sirius and Zachary beside me. I gave him a pointed look. "Pleeeeeaaaaase?" He pleaded playfully while he put his lip into a pout. Damn, he was cute.

"How about a celebratory handshake?" I said while extending my hand out to him. He rolled his eyes, a smile tugging on his lips.

"Fine, fine." He grabbed my hand firmly, shaking it, before he pulled me closer to him. I gasped in surprise at the motion, and before I knew what was happening, James Potter's arms were around me, his cheek resting against my hair. My arms were limp until, for an unknown reason, I wrapped them securely around his waist and breathed in his beautiful scent.

"Aw, look at that! I think it's time to initiate a group hug!" Sirius said in a humorous tone. He had then wrapped his arms around James and I, followed by Remus and Macy, and soon enough Violet, Amos, Zachary, and even Alice and Frank, who had stopped snogging to join the group, followed their suit.

"Can't...eh...can't...breathe..." I choked out in between shallow breaths. Everyone laughed (what was so funny about my pain?) and slowly let go, including James, and I allowed myself to breathe in the fresh, sweet air I had been lacking a few moments ago.

"See, was that so hard, Evans?"

"Yes."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Will you go out with me?"

"Ye-no." I said quickly. That's about the fifth time he's almost got me to say that to him. I hate his stupid mind tricks, I swear I always fall for them.

"Did I at least play well today? I heard you cheering for me." James said, softly winking. I rolled my eyes, fighting off the growing smile on my face.

"Yes, you played _extremely _well today. Happy?" I asked, crossing my arms over my chest. He smirked proudly.

"Delighted."

"You did well too, Zachary, and you too Sirius." I said to the two other team members, who were currently engaged in a conversation with Frank, Alice, Macy, Violet, Remus, and Amos.

"Thanks! I'm actually sort of glad it's over-now we get to celebrate! I fancy myself a butterbeer, how about you guys?" We all shouted of words of agreement at Sirius, who whooped in bliss. "Alright! _Party in the Gryffindor common room!"_ he shouted, receiving positive responses.

"Come on, let's go." Violet said to me, a note of urgency in her voice. I looked into her eyes, searching for a sort of sign as to what was wrong. She then motioned (with her eyes, of course) over to Remus, Macy, and Zachary, the former looking extremely mad, the middle looking somewhat confused, and the latter standing defensively. Violet looked back at me. "I'll explain later."

We walked over to Macy, yelling a good bye to the boys, and began to pull Macy away from them. She looked a little scared for a moment before she realized it was us, and she breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank goodness it's you guys, that was awful." Macy stated, rubbing her temples with her fingers.

"What happened?" I asked, my curiosity getting the better of me.

"Um, well actually, I don't know if I should be happy or upset right now. You see, Zachary just asked me to go the Black and White Ball with him next Friday…I figured why not, since Remus hadn't asked me yet, right? So I said yes. I mean, he's a nice kid, smart, fit, attractive…

"And then, literally two seconds after I accepted, Remus asked me! Do you believe that! Rubbish! And well, I really like Remus, but I'm not going to go back on my word, especially right in front of my date. So I told him that I had already said yes to Zachary and that I was sorry…So I don't know if I should be happy that Remus asked me, or upset that I can't go with him. Whatever I'm feeling right now isn't either, though-I'm a bit confused." I patted her back sympathetically, knowing full well how much she liked Remus, but also knowing about her loyalty and willingness to never go back on her word.

"I know you're probably a bit down right now, Mace, but you did the right thing. And just because you go with Zachary, doesn't mean you can't have a few dances with Remus, right?" Macy smiled a bit, fidgeting with the hem of her coat.

"I guess not…" she mumbled happily. I smiled.

"Good." I said, resting my hands in my coat pockets.

"So who are you two going with?" Macy asked us.

"Well," started Violet, "You know that cute Hufflepuff we were just sitting with, Amos? He asked me last week, and I agreed. He really is quite the looker, eh?" I laughed-I was happy for her, she and Amos looked good together.

"And you, Lily?" Macy asked, curiously raising an eyebrow. "James?"

"No, actually," I snapped at her, mildly offended. "Jonathan McDonald."

Violet gaped while Macy stuttered, "J-Jonathan McDonald? You mean _the _Jonathan McDonald?"

I nodded, an amused smile on my face. Jonathan was (minus the Marauders), the best looking boy in our year, with tall, broad shoulders, a toned physique from playing as a beater on the Ravenclaw quidditch team, and a gorgeous face with soft, dirty blond locks of hair that framed it almost angelically. He didn't really go out with girls, let alone ask them himself-he was more of a silent charmer, capturing the hearts of many girls quietly and unknowingly. And yet, he asked _me, _Lily Evans. The thought made me extremely happy and gave me a boost of self confidence.

"Wow, Lily. You better look amazing that night." I laughed-how typical of Violet to care about my appearance when seen with Jonathan.

"I was planning on it, Vi."

"Alright, so when are we going to put part III into play?" I stopped, dead in my tracks to the common room, a worried look on my face. Oh no, no, no, no…

"Um…part III?" part III was going to be the worst and most humiliating of them all. I imagined the look on James' face when we pulled it-it would be pure terror and embarrassment. All of his past glory from the match would be gone, all the happiness radiating off of him would vanish, and his ego would tarnish.

"Yeah. We're doing that next aren't we?" Macy asked softly.

It took me a fraction of a second to make up my answer. "No, absolutely not…at least, not now."

Violet raised an eyebrow curiously at me, a small smile on her lips. "Is Lily protecting her ickle Jamesie?" I ignored the comment and faced my friends.

"You guys, this was a major win, and everyone thinks he did a great job as captain. We can't take that away from him." I murmured softly, my eyes downcast. Why was I backing out? James deserved to get a piece of his own medicine, didn't he?

…Didn't he?

"Not today." I said once more. "Um, I think I'm going to go get a book from the library to read tonight, I'll catch up with you guys later." They eyed me suspiciously before shrugging and continuing on their way to the common room. I turned around, trying to ignore the queasy, bubbling feeling of guilt rising in my chest. Why did I back out? And why did I feel so guilty for even thinking of the plan in the first place?

"Well, that was awfully nice of you, Evans." I looked up. _Of course, _I thought. James always seemed to pop up randomly at times just to annoy me.

"Put a sock in it, Potter." I said before brushing past him, glaring at him on the way. Wait, why was I mad at him now? I inwardly groaned, cursing myself for acting so moody.

"Calm down, Lily, I'm being honest." He said. I felt chills go up and down my back as he said my name-there was something about the way it rolled off his tongue, the way he made it sound so beautiful compared to anyone else who said it, that made me carefully listen to whatever he was saying, hanging on to everyone word, every _syllable, _in hope he would say it again.

"Thank you." He said once more, surprising me. "No, really." He said, eyeing the skeptical expression on my face. "I would hate to be pranked right now, especially after such a game." He laughed quietly before pulling out his wand. "So, thank you. _Orchideous."_

A rose grew from the end of wand, and landed softly into his outstretched hand. He twirled it around in his fingers for a moment before giving it to me, a smile on his face.

"A rose? That's new," I mused while laughing quietly to myself, "Usually I get lilies."

James shrugged, putting his hands in his pockets while gazing at the floor. "I know. I wanted to be original." He lifted his eyes so that his gaze was locked onto mine. Green starred into hazel for a few moments-neither of us spoke.

"Um, Lily," He spoke in a nervous voice while I wondered what he was going to say. "Who…who're you going to the Black and White Ball with?"

My heart sunk into my stomach, and I felt as though I had just walked into a brick wall. Suddenly, I felt extremely nauseous. "Oh. Well, um, last week Jonathan asked me to go with him." I said, "And, well…I've, uh, I've said yes." My eyes met his again, and I noticed a brief look of hurt flicker through them before he coughed awkwardly, his gaze setting on the floor again.

"Jonathan? Oh, nice bloke…right. Right, brilliant. Fantastic. Well, I'd um, better get to the common room, everyone's waiting for me." He gave a sort of forced laugh before he began to turn away from me.

"Um, James?" He turned back slowly, eying me sadly-where was this new James Potter coming from? Where was the cocky, arrogant James Potter that was hugging me like a bloody conceited king just over fifteen minutes ago? This, certainly, was not the James Potter I knew.

"I'm sorry…" I breathed out slowly. "I really am."

"Nah, don't worry about it." he said, waving his hand from over his shoulders as he walked away.

I stood there, watching his retreating back and slumped shoulders, until he turned the corner. I twirled the rose in my hands slowly, noting the delicacy of the petals and beauty it held. Suddenly, anger rose up in me- I threw the rose on the ground furiously before leaning against the wall. Why did he treat me badly, pulling pranks on me, always asking me out, and always annoying me? And _then, _he had moments like _these, _where he was sweet and considerate and made me start to like him as a person instead of hate him as a stupid, bulling prat. Why was he _so _confusing?

I stomped off towards the library, telling myself I'd had enough of James Potter. Subconsciously, however, I had gone back over to the rose and picked it up, softly stroking it's long stem and fragile petals, before continuing on my way to the library.

_**A/N Wow. That chapter was extremely…suggestive. I tried to kind of explain a little bit of there love lives before now so you'd get kind of an idea of what they were like. ANYWAY. Here's the update! I'm very proud I've finished this chapter, seeing as I had difficulties figuring out the plot for this particular chapter, but with a little help from my friend Conrad, I made it through: he baked me cookies for the holidays, and they're super yummy(: chocolate always helps me think. I know I made Lily seem extremely bitchy in this, and I felt the need to punch her when she was creating the rumor…but hey- girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do. So how was everyone's Christmas? Leave a comment/review and tell me what you got!(:**_

_**As for me…I got so much harry potter stuff…I got a wand, a ron shirt, a harry shirt, morvolo's ring (the horcrux one), the marauder's map, the tales of beedle the bard, and a biiig biiiiiiiig book containing a lot of extra stuff and whatnot. I'm so happy(: I also got almost an entire new wardrobe, which is pretty cool too, a NOOK, black suede ankle boots, and some other things. I was very content this year.(:**_

_**Anyway, I feel the need to explain this, for I'm sure some of you are confused. **_

_***IMPORTANT* The story will majorly be told from Lily's perspective. However, at some points, I'm going to have to follow James and his friends. This might be through Lily's perspective, but it will most likely be written in third person. I will ALWAYS signify a change of perspective with one of the separation lines, so it shouldn't be that hard to decipher. **_

_**Thank you again to all of the people who have reviewed and favorited and alerted this story. **_**That**_** was definitely the best Christmas present this year. So I personally thank you all and wish you all a happy Christmas!(:**_

_**For anyone who's interested, for the last part of the chapter where James and Lily share a moment, I was listening to the song 'the walk', by Imogen Heap. Really good song, kind of sort of represents their relationship right now.**_


	4. Chapter 4

After spending the entire day in the library, I began to make my way back to the Gryffindor common room. I would have to face James and Jonathan sooner or later-I had come to the decision that I would ditch Jonathan and take up James' offer and go to the dance with him instead. Don't ask me why I made that decision…if I think about it anymore I might just change my mind again.

After the game, it had turned into an extremely stormy day, with loud wind and pelting rain. I said the password, and the portrait of the fat lady swung open to let me in. I could hear cheering from inside, meaning the party was still going on-also meaning that James was still in there somewhere. I could corner him and ask to talk to him in private. Yeah, that could work. After, I'd break the news to Jonathan. Perfect plan.

I walked inside, my eyes scanning over every inch in the room. The party was booming, with a large amount of people from the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff houses included in it. Everyone was ecstatic, all yelling and cheering and drinking. Either you were currently involved in a deep quidditch discussion, were in a group drinking butterbeer, or snogging. No other events seemed to be going on in the room, other than the casual groups that were actually listening to the cranked, blasting music in the room and were dancing to it (dirty dancing to it actually…).

My eyes stopped on a particularly feverish couple, and I laughed to myself as I watched them grip each other and exchange saliva rather…well, _excitedly_. The girl was Jillian Thornton, an extremely pretty, skinny, and tall blonde girl with a very _bouncy _chest and tan skin. And the boy was…

"James?" I croaked out in a horse whisper heard by no one but me. I watched as his thumbs kneaded into her back busily, tugging at the bottom of her black v-neck with a sort of heated passion. She responded happily, smothering his lips with her own, slightly swollen ones.

I needed a drink.

I searched the room at top speed until I spotted a bottle of vodka (muggle-borns, such as myself, always managed to sneak in muggle alcohols to fill our own consent: by guess, this was Freddy Gordon's gift to the party-he was very well known for having a great stash of muggle alcohol in his trunks). I quickly dashed over to it, pouring myself a glass hastily, before downing it. It burnt my throat and left tingling, unpleasant sensations on my tongue. Yet, I needed more.

After a few further drinks, I had eventually found Violet and Alice, who were also clutching cups of alcohol in their hands, though they didn't seem to be abusing it such as I was. I shouted words of greeting and zeal- everything was blurring, my senses dulling, to the point where I didn't even know what I was saying anymore. I downed two glasses of butterbeer and danced with a few people.

"L-Lily, babe, hellooo." After a few minutes-or maybe it was an hour? I couldn't tell anymore- I felt a hard peck on my cheek. Looking up, I had found Jonathan, a cup of butterbeer sloshing around in his hand, and a silly grin on his face. Without thinking about it, I crashed my lips against his. His eyes widened in surprise before responding back enthusiastically. I opened one eye, peering out of it, and low and behold, James was watching Jonathan and me. His expression was unreadable. Or perhaps it was just unreadable to me in my current state.

I stopped, gasping for breath, before taking Jonathan's hand and leading him out of the Gryffindor common room. He clumsily walked after me- by the looks of it, he was just as drunk as I was. We both giggled, noisily making our way up to the Head Boy and Head Girl's room. I said the password, and the portrait swung open, allowing Jonathan and me to go inside.

I ran, still clutching his hand, up into the dormitories available to the two Heads, and began to kiss Jonathan again. We fell onto the bed, him moving on top of me, my hands fumbling with the buttons of his shirt. I briefly heard the pelting rain and noisy winds again before I completely blacked-out.

* * *

"Evans? Evans, wake up."

"Ngh, go away."

My head pounded with a pain that felt similar to someone hitting your head with a hammer repeatedly before setting you on fire.

Yeah, that bad.

I groaned, throwing an arm over my eyes with much difficulty. My body felt sore, every part of me aching, and my arms felt like lead and were hard to lift. Sunlight streamed through the windows, directly on me, and even though my eyes were closed, the light burned them with an intensity that hurt like _hell. _

"I have something that will make you feel better." Wait. That voice… I opened my eyes, which felt like they were crusted over with cement.

"P-Potter?" the boy smirked down at me.

"Morning, Evans." I clutched a hand to my head, trying (and failing) to sit up straight in bed. He wrapped a supporting arm around my shoulders and repositioned the pillow before setting my back against it so I was sitting upright. My stomach suddenly churned, and before I knew what was going on, James was shoving a bucket underneath my face and holding my hair back. I retched into it, and with a flick of his wand, the sick disappeared. I groaned and leaned back, embarrassed beyond belief that _Potter, _of all people, was seeing me like such a mess.

"Here, drink this." He handed me a potion, and without question, I gulped it down. The nausea went away quickly, and the head ache lessened by a bit- however, my body was still sore, and there was still a light pounding in my head. Other than that, though, I felt at least ten times better.

James pressed a wet cloth to my head, and I closed my eyes in relief. "Mmm, that feels nice…"

He laughed, repositioning himself in the chair he was sitting in. I don't remember there being chairs in the girls' dormitories…My eyes suddenly snapped open, and I turned towards James. The abrupt action caused a pain in my neck, but I didn't care at the moment.

"Wait, where are we? And how did I get here?" I looked around the room- I seemed to be in the Heads' dorms. James sighed, leaning back in his chair and folding his arms over his body.

"Well, yesterday you got a little…well, let's just say you had a little too much to drink. You and Jonathan came up here last night and…" He said, cutting off his sentence and eyeing me uncertainly.

Oh no.

I looked down at my appearance, and low and behold, my shirt was gone, leaving just the pink camisole I had been wearing under it, although it was _extremely _hiked up on my stomach. My skinny jeans were still on, though they were unzipped and unbuttoned, revealing the light green and blue silk underwear I had been wearing underneath them. I shrieked.

"Potter! Don't look at me!" The boy flushed in embarrassment and quickly turned around, allowing me to pull my camisole down and do up my pants. I looked around for my shirt, but couldn't find it. I groaned.

"What is it?"

"I can't find my shirt…"I said in a defeated voice. James, almost immediately, took off his black blazer and handed it to me.

"Here." He said. He seemed to be wearing a reddish tee shirt under it, though I didn't think much of it- my vision kept going in and out of focus, and my mind was trying _so_ hard to remember the events of last night. Me and Jonathan snogging…rolling on the bed…him pulling my shirt off…me pulling his pants off…Oh no, no, no, no….

I slammed my eyes shut before speaking in a hushed voice, "Where's Jonathan?"

James turned back around and sat on the edge of my bed. "I have a friend in Ravenclaw who's really good at memory charms. I got him to wipe last night from his mind and bring him to his bed so he'd just think he got wasted last night, and won't know of anything else that happened."

"What about other people? I'm sure they saw us leaving, won't they assume…" I began.

"Evans, everyone at that party was either too drunk to remember or too busy snogging to notice. Don't worry about it," He said, giving me a reassuring smile. I watched him for a minute before I clumsily stood up, shrugging the blazer over my shoulders. It was too big for me, yet I didn't mind, for it reeked off James' scent of cologne and quidditch…

I muttered, "I'm going to go wash-up," before leaving the room and walking into the conjoined one next to it. I shut the door, leaning against it for a few moments, before walking forward and turning towards the sink.

My hair was a bit disheveled, and my make up was running somewhat. My face seemed to be stuck in a moment of flush- I'm sure it was just the after effects of vomiting. Speaking of which…

I ran over to the toilet and heaved into it before groaning and wiping my mouth with a towel, flushing the toilet. I walked back over to the mirror for further inspection. There was a red spot on my neck and my lips looked swollen and teased. Great.

I washed my face in the sink before pulling my hair up into a ponytail and using a conveniently placed toothbrush to scrub of the taste of sick from my mouth. After making my appearance a decent one, I walked out of the bathroom, feeling a bit refreshed.

James was still sitting there, awaiting my return. He smiled up at me after noticing that I had reentered the room, and I returned it hesitantly, still embarrassed that he had seen me in such a foul way.

After picking up my shoes from the ground and tying the laces together so I could carry them much like a purse, together, we began to descend the stairs, me groaning as I clutched the wall weakly to support my weight.

Only a moment after I stumbled down the first step, James wound one arm under my shoulders, the other under my legs. He then lifted me into the air, carrying my bridal style down the flight of stairs.

I blushed in surprise before winding one of my arms around his neck, the other still carrying the shoes. We made it past the stairs, through the portrait, and into the Gryffindor common room without passing anyone along the way- it must have been early.

Once we got to the foot of the stairs to the Girls' dormitories, he set me to my feet. I shrugged out of his blazer, prepared to hand it to him, before he refused. "Keep it. I have about a dozen more." I nodded, slightly dumbstruck, before making my way up the first few steps.

I turned around after the third step, looking down at James. "Thank you," I croaked out, my voice sore and tired. "You're been…a saint. Really. Why did you come after me?"

James shrugged. "Actually, I was heading up there myself with Jillian. Poor thing, she's probably more hung-over than you are. I should probably go see her, too. I'm taking her to the ball, you know."

What the _fuck_.

"Lovely." I said in a startlingly angry voice. He looked taken back a bit, but before he got the opportunity to question it, I was up the stairs, in my dorm, and lying in my bed, plotting when and where I could finally fulfill part III of my mastery plan.

_**A/N Short, I know, but I had to get this done—this chapter's a set up chapter for next chapter, and I didn't want it to be too long, because someone complained about the lengthiness of my previous one…**_

_**Anyone who's ever been hung-over before knows that what Lily's feeling right now SUCKS. I apologize to anyone who has ever had to experience that awful thing before.**_

_**Once again, thank you to everyone who was reviewed and alerted and favorited this story. You guys are my life, pretty much.(:**_

_**Ahh, I'm just throwing this in here because I feel like announcing it to someone who doesn't go to my school and won't make rumors about this, but an upper-classman just told me he liked me. WOOT.**_

_**The ball, unfortunately, will NOT be next chapter. It will be the following chapter, though. Is there anything in particular that you guys want to see there? I've already gotten a request for a grinding scene and a dance-off haha. I won't promise I will incorporate them into the story, because (SORRY!) I most likely won't, since I've already plotted out the scene. However, I'm extremely curious as to what you guys are interested in reading about and seeing with these characters.**_

_**Also, my vacation is ending…**_

_**I've had an update time of a chapter every three days or so, but I can't promise that they will be that fast beginning this Monday. I will continue and finish this story though, so count on me making it to the end, because I will. Promise.**_

_**Song inspiration for the chapter: Pretend- Secondhand Serenade**_

_**Anything by them is great.**_


	5. Chapter 5

The following day I spent entirely in my bed, sleeping for the most part. My body ached, my forehead felt like it was splitting, and I couldn't focus on anything with my eyes before they glazed over and shut from strain. There was no more luck with food, either- everything I seemed to eat, I just threw up later.

The following Monday, however, I felt completely refreshed. I had gotten up extra early to take a long, hot shower, had the elves iron and wash my uniform the night before, and even had time to have Violet do my hair and make-up. By the time breakfast had arrived, though, I wasn't feeling nearly as good as I looked.

"Something wrong, Lil?" Macy asked after I had taken a bite of my scrambled eggs. It wasn't exactly settling in my stomach- before I had time to register a second thought, I felt the food coming back up. I raised a hand in front of my mouth and pushed the bench back viciously, getting up and running towards the girls' bathroom.

Once I was safely inside, I ran over to the first toilet I saw and threw up into it. Once my stomach emptied itself, I ripped off a few pieces of toilet paper and wiped my mouth with them.

"Lily? Lily, are you okay?" I looked up and saw Alice walking hurriedly over to me before squatting down, rubbing my back in a motherly fashion.

"Yeah…I-I guess my stomach just doesn't want any food yet." She handed me a breath mint, which I stuffed into my mouth gratefully.

"Come on." She extended her hand to me, and I gratefully put my own in it. She pulled me to my feet, handed me my book bag, and together, we walked out of girls' bathroom and went on our way to potions.

"Lily," Alice started hesitantly after a few minutes of silent walking. "You and Jonathan had…you know…after the Gryffindor party, right?"

I groaned, burying my face into my hands. "Yes, yes…at least, I reckon we did. I blacked out, so I don't quite remember, although James said he found us up there…" James. I wouldn't think about him right now.

"You don't suppose…oh, never mind, I'm probably wrong." She said, shrugging her shoulders nonchalantly before pulling open the Potions door. I gave her a suspicious look before deciding that I probably shouldn't worry about it. We walked into the back and took a seat together at one of the stations.

"I want to do part III. Today," I blurted out, seeing her surprised expression.

"Oh." She scratched the back of her neck. "I was supposed to meet Frank next period since it's free, but…I suppose I could reschedule…" I smiled gratefully at her, and she returned it, albeit rather tentatively.

"Hey, where did you guys go?" Violet asked as she and Macy took the seats in front of us.

"I was just feeling a bit sick, that's all. Guess not all the alcohol's out of my system yet." I murmured while searching my bag for my cauldron. Alice shifted uncomfortably and opened her mouth, as if to speak, before the professor came into the room and began the lesson.

"Okay, students," began professor Slughorn. "After a month long project of creating Polyjuice potion, today you will hand in what you have made. Each pair, please bring a vial up to the front of the class, and I will judge your score on that." I pulled out two vials- one, that was to go to Slughorn, the other, which I was going to use for part III.

I only half followed along for the rest of the class, the other half being spent passing small notes with Macy, Violet, and Alice, explaining what was to be done. When time came for the class to be over, we sprinted out of the room and up to the Gryffindor common room- all seventh year Gryffindors who weren't taking divination or ancient runes had a free period this block, which included my group, the Marauders, and about 80 percent of the Gryffindor seventh year population.

After checking that the coast was clear and sneaking up into the Marauder's dorm room (being Head girl had its privileges), Violet pulled out a small compact bag from her book bag.

Once open, she pulled out a large couple of vials full of bee attractant and dumped them onto all four off the beds. I then proceeded to walk over to the window and open it. It was winter, with startlingly cold weather and snow covering the ground, yet I knew that the bee attractant would cause a large amounts and swarms to come (we magically amplified it so that it would be smelt from miles away).

"Are you sure that James is afraid of bees?" Alice asked from her position of keeping watch at the door. Violet nodded before shoving the vials back into her bag, a triumphant smile crossing her face.

"Yes, I'm sure. Sirius let it slip while we were dating," She explained. I sniggered to myself- of course, Violet would remember any conversation from when she was dating Sirius. "Now all we need is a bit of his hair for the Polyjuice potion and one of his uniforms."

"Alright," Macy said, anxiously tugging at the hair, which was in a low, side ponytail. "Can we get out of here soon? I have a bad feeling that they're going to come up here any minu-"

"Hey, Moony, what do you think? Fancy accompanying Padfoot and I? Wormy's not going, said he couldn't find a date…"

Immediately, all movement in the room suddenly stopped. I shared a look with Violet, whose face was paling just as rapidly as mine was. Alice angrily glared at Macy and yelled in a hushed voice, "Way to jinx it, Mace!"

"Quick!" I whispered, motioning to the closet. All four of us ran over and clambered into it, leaning as far back against the wall as we could. The closet smelt of teenage boy, cologne, and hair gel. Lovely.

"Eugh!" Macy let out a disgusted sound as she held up a pack of condoms, a few of them missing. "That's gross!" She nauseatingly threw the box to the ground and opened her mouth to complain more before Alice shoved her hand in front of it, muffling her voice.

"I don't see why not, I suppose we'd be original, yeah?" I swallowed noisily as my heart hammered loudly in my chest. I heard the door to the dormitory open and three pairs of footsteps coming in.

"Vi," I breathed out, speaking in the quietest voice I had ever used before, "Will they notice the attractant?"

"Shouldn't, it's clear and only bees can smell it," She whispered back. Silence then enveloped the closet again as we listened to the sounds of their voices and pattering of their footsteps.

"Thata boy!" Sirius said, clamping a hand on his shoulder. "Who're you going with, then? I'm taking Marissa, that smoking Ravenclaw in our Herbology class."

"Oh," Remus said. Judging from the disappointment in his voice, I could tell he was still upset about missing his opportunity to go with Macy. "I asked Olivia, hope that's okay James." I felt Macy sigh softly next to me while briefly hearing the sound of a trunk opening and closing before James spoke.

"That's fine mate, I'm glad for you- she's really hot, with those legs and that hair. Hope you don't mind small ones, though." Sirius let out a bark of laughter before fist-bumping with James. I rolled my eyes in revulsion- _boys._

"Okay, I have the map and the cloak, let's go." Then the footsteps faded away, along with the voices, and I let out a long breath. I hadn't even noticed I was holding one.

After a minute passed of silence, Violet opened the door to the closet, and we all walked out, glad to be rid of the weird combination of smells from inside of it. I took this chance to really look at their room- surprisingly enough, it wasn't as messy as I thought it would be. Sure, there were a few pairs of trousers, shirts, and boxers lying on the ground, but the room wasn't nearly as unorganized as I thought it would be.

"Alright, got it." Violet said, picking up a longer, wavy piece of dark hair from a nearby comb. She put it into one of the vials previously filled with attractant and pocketed it in her bag, along with a male Gryffindor uniform, before we stealthily made our way downstairs.

"Okay, we're done with the first part. Now we just have to set up the closet after dinner, get the Polyjuice potion, and carefully follow all the steps." I announced once we were safely in the common room again. I checked the clock that was on the wall.

"We have a few more blocks to go, plus lunch and break, before dinner," I briefed, glancing at my friends, a smile growing on my face. "I can hardly wait."

* * *

"Oi! Prongs!" I watched from a safe distance away as Violet (who was disguised with Polyjuice potion as Sirius) ran over to a James, who was busy walking with Frank, as I stayed hidden in a broom closet, a bound Sirius Black behind me (the Incarcerous jinx had really come in handy).

"He's going to know it's not me," Sirius said. Instead of sounding upset that we had jumped him in the middle of the hallway, he was more amused and entertained, if anything.

"I'm not so sure about that."

"Hey, Padfoot, what's up?" James said, curiously raising an eyebrow at Violet. She flicked the hair out of her eyes and wriggled her eyebrows, not unlike the real Sirius at all.

"You see that broom closet?" She whispered, clamping a hand on James' back and pointing to a broom closet directly across the way from the broom closet I currently occupying.

"Yeah…?" He said, sharing a look with Frank that clearly showed his question as to what Sirius was trying to say.

"Well, Lily's in there right now…waiting for _you, _mate." James' eyes nearly bulged out of his head as he gaped at Sirius.

"Are you serious?" he asked, skepticism on his face.

"Actually, yes, I am Sirius." Violet said, expertly imitating Sirius in a way that was almost shamefully. The real Sirius scoffed behind me ("I don't sound _that_ stupid while saying that…").

James gave him a pointed look. "Come on, Prongs, you don't believe your best mate? She told me specifically to tell you this broom closet, this time. If you don't hurry up, you might miss your chance…"

James finally smirked, shoving his hands in his pockets as he began to walk over to the closet. "Well, it'd be rude to keep such a lovely lady waiting, eh? Don't wait up for me, it could be awhile." He strutted over to the broom closet, a casual and charming swag in his steps, before he placed his hand on the knob and twisted it open, stepping inside.

Not a moment after the door closed, a loud _BOOM _came from inside of the closet. Everyone in the hallway stopped and faced it.

A moment after the explosion, a foam-covered James stepped out of the closet, sopping with white froth that covered every part of his body. Soon enough, everyone who saw him in the hallway laughed, some even in hysterics.

I began to laugh so much to the point where I collapsed on the ground. It didn't get any better when he took off his glasses, and there was a patch of skin not covered in foam in the shape of the spectacles he had just removed. No, that just made it worse.

In my current state of hysteria, I accidently knocked open the door, falling onto the ground outside of it while frantically clutching my aching sides. I looked up, my eyes blurring with tears, and saw James watching me, his eyes full of understanding at how that had happened.

"Hey! Prongs! Get me out of here, I've been in here for…" Sirius yelled from behind me, his voice stopping in his throat once he saw Violet, who was changing back into herself. She shortened in height, her hair grew longer and silkier, her eyes changed from grey to a yellowish-brown, and she grew slimmer and curvier. "…ever…" Sirius finished, his gaze lingering on Violet.

"Damn," He said, a smirk growing on his face. "I have to say, you look pretty good in my clothes, 'Let. I'm getting kind of turned on right now." I started to laugh even more, along with the few other kids who had heard his comment. Violet's face ripened, and she crossed her arms across her chest.

"Charming." She said curtly, sticking her nose in the air.

"No, really. I feel somewhat dominant- in fact, you should wear my clothes more often. The idea's quite appealing to me, actually." Violet made a disgusted sound.

"You…you foul-minded, undignified, corrupted, immature, perverted _prat." _Violet snorted in an appalled voice. James, in the meantime, took advantage to my attention being on someone else, and muttered the counter-curse for Sirius. The ropes disappeared, and the boy stood up, brushing himself off, before walking over to James.

"That's really funny, actually, since your _best friend_ here just pulled a juvenile prank to embarrass James. So, now who's immature? I thought so," he said, staring at Violet's face, which was reddening more so from anger than blushing anymore.

"Come on, Prongs." Sirius said. Violet offered him a rude hand gesture while I continued to laugh, not quite getting over the foam-covered James walking away from me. Apparently, I wasn't the only one- people were still laughing as his feet made squishing noises with every step.

"That was great," I breathed out, getting up from off the ground and dusting myself off while glancing at all my friends. Violet looked rather embarrassed, but still pleased, while Alice looked a bit amused, and Macy…well, Macy wouldn't look me in the eyes. Her face was down, her gaze focused on her shoes.

"Come on, we don't want to miss the next part…" I said, and together, the four of us walked onward to the Gryffindor tower after them.

Once we had gotten inside the common room, I heard a loud, almost feminine scream, come from one of the dorms. I smiled to myself- so James had found the bees.

"Get them _away!" _he bellowed as he ran down the stairs, still covered in foam, but now, with a large swarm of bees chasing after him. His face was darkly flushed, and his eyes gave off a terrified, scared emotion. Perfect. For extra effect, as he passed us, I stuck my foot out. He stumbled before quickly regaining his composure and diving headfirst into the portrait hole.

I, along with everyone else in the room, howled with laughter.

"What a wimp!" I heard a boy in my year, Paul Arnolds, say in between his gasps for air.

"Afraid of bees? I haven't been afraid of bees since I was six!" David Roué, a short, built sixth year, said while chortling.

"I feel embarrassed _for_ him." Violet said, pushing up her sleeves, which were too long for her, considering she was still wearing Sirius' button down. I nodded while smiling contently. James didn't know who he was messing with,

* * *

I lay down in my bed, my face wet with tears, and a frown on my face. It's Friday morning, and I've just come back from the bathroom, where I've thrown up _again, _like the past four mornings before me.

The realization had come to me not so long ago- last night, actually. Macy had just been sent a letter from her older sister saying that she was pregnant. Macy was ecstatic, as was I, before she continued to read the letter. Her cousin went on to explain how she was feeling moody, bloated, and how she- when Macy had read this out loud, I'm sure my face paled considerably- had continuous _morning sickness_.

I had come to the conclusion that it was extremely potential I was carrying a baby. The idea terrified me. What would people think? How would people react? What would my parents say? Oh Merlin, what would _Petunia _say? Surely I'd never hear the end of it from her…

Alice saw the look on my face and pulled me out of the room. Then I broke down.

She told me she considered it and that even if it were true ("There's always a possibility you've just got a stomach bug!" She had exclaimed), she would stick with me through thick and thin. We then shared a hug, and if I remember correctly, I think that I had heard her sniffling, too.

James was being a saint, as well. Somehow, he had figured it out, too ("You ran to the bathroom every morning, and well, I mean, I know how you and Jonathan had…you know…"). After seeing my sad expression, he had pulled me to the side and asked what was wrong. When I wouldn't tell him, he guessed- and correctly, might I add.

Then, he had given me a pregnancy test. When I received this, I had eyed him surprisingly. He had then told me that when you were a Marauder, pregnancy tests and condoms were always a necessity (at this, I had hit him).

After taking the test, I had nearly fainted while reading the '_positive' _response written on the front. That was how I had gotten to my current position of sulking on my bed.

The pain of realizing what had happened seemed so unreal to me. I felt like crying, but no tears ever came. I felt like telling Jonathan, but the possibility that he wouldn't believe me or wouldn't support the baby scared me. I felt like life wasn't worth living anymore, but I knew that if continued to think like that, I might just make a big mistake. I felt like I was living someone else's life. I felt…_inhuman. _

"Lily, you can't stay there forever…" Violet said, sitting on the edge of my bed with a worried expression painted across her pretty face. "Come on, we have to get to DADA." I groaned in protest, but the next thing I knew, she was lifting me up to my feet and dragging me down to the common room. She quickly pointed to my wrinkled uniform and muttered a spell underneath her breath so that they all looked crisp and fresh, and she then pulled a headband out of her purse (she would have one in there…) and handed it to me, which I then placed delicately in my hair, making myself look presentable again.

Once in the common room, I noticed a few things- first, I had noticed that it was nearly empty, minus Remus. Second, I had noticed that Remus was pacing back and forth, biting his thumbnail with anxiety etched into his facial features. And third, I had noticed how as soon as we came down, he abruptly stopped pacing and ran over to us- more particularly, to me.

"Lily, I'm so sorry, don't be mad at me, I thought it would all be in good fun, but I've only just noticed that it was really awful of me, and I don't expect you to forgive me, but I treasure our friendship, and-"

I put a hand up, signaling Remus to stop. "What're you talking about?" I said slowly, trying to read his expression, which reeked of guilt.

He took a deep breath and started twiddling his thumbs, his gaze lingering on the ground. "Do you…do you think that you're pregnant, Lily? Because you're not."

Violet and I shared a look before I drawled out, "What do you mean?"

"I mean," he said, his face reddening as his eyes darted around the room madly, "That James has been sneaking puking potions in your breakfast every morning, and that he gave you a pregnancy test that he jinxed so that it would only respond positively. And before you argue, saying that it was perfectly possible because you slept with Jonathan, you didn't. James found you both passed out on the bed, clearly both too drunk to have gotten farther than you already had. That's why Jonathan didn't remember, and that's why you can't recall too much either- you were both just really, _really _drunk…there were no memory charms involved. This was all just a setup as James' way to prank you back."

Oh _hell _no.

"Remus John Lupin..." I growled, glaring at him. His eyes widened while he held up his hands in surrender.

"I'm sorry! I've been feeling guilty about it ever since he told us the plan! Sirius and Peter thought it was brilliant, I just thought it was plain terrible…I'm sorry I waited so long to tell you, Lily…"

I stayed silent for a long time, watching as Remus continued to plead and apologize with his eyes. I didn't want to forgive him, but then again… he was honest and told me what was going on instead of allowing me to deal with the outcomes (although they were nonexistent, in my case) of being a teenage mother.

"…okay." I said finally. Remus sighed in relief before wrapping his arms around my shoulders in a hug.

"Thank you, Lily. I truly value out friendship, I'm so glad you accept my apology. Just so you know, I'm staying out of this prank war from now on because you're both my friends, and I don't want to pick sides." I blushed at the sincerity of his words before hugging him back.

"You're uh…you're welcome, Remus. I value our friendship too…I'm glad you told me. _Now," _I began, cracking my knuckles while detaching myself from the boy. "I am going to make James Potter wish he'd never been born, the _git_. Let's get to DADA."

The three of us walked on to our next class, where the professor had told us we would be practicing simple shield charms with partners of our choice. I worked out details in my head of the different scenarios that could happen, all of them starting with me asking him to be my partner and it ending with him experiencing some sort of fatal injury.

We walked into the classroom with the other students before sitting in our seats.

"Alright!" began the professor in an excited voice, "I'd like each of you to pick partners to practice our previous lesson of using shield charms to block off jinxes and curses. Everyone please pick someone they haven't yet used as a partner," He added, watching as James and Sirius almost immediately turned towards each other.

"Oi, Potter! Partner?" I yelled from across the room. He looked up, a surprised and slightly amused expression on his face.

"You? Asking to be partners with me? That's different…not that I'm complaining." He said while walking over to me. I smiled innocently, fluttering my eyelashes at him.

"Well, you've been so understanding of my current…_state…_recently. You've begun to grow on me." I said in a faulty sweet voice, resting my hand on his upper forearm. He smirked, leaning in closer to me.

"Really? Well, isn't that interesting. Does that mean I'll get the 'yes' response I've been waiting years for?" He asked, his voice dripping with arrogance and self-satisfaction.

"Actually…no." Suddenly, my face contorted with anger and rage.

"Think you're funny, do you, Potter, faking a pregnancy as a way to get back at me?" I growled while reaching for my wand in my pocket. He eyed my moving hand, but before he could pull out his own wand to react, I was saying the incantation, "_Locomotor mortis_!"

His legs locked together and stuck to the ground, so as to make him unable to move. I then pointed at his pants, saying "_Evanesco_,", and with a flourish of my wand, they disappeared, leaving him standing there in his blue and purple striped boxers. Many people were watching by now, most of them laughing at my past action. I smiled before aiming my wand directly at him, yelling the incantation "_Tarantallegra_!" which made him begin to do a silly dance.

I doubled over, laughing, along with everyone else. Oh, this was just _too_ great. Because of my current state of being in hysterics, I lost focus on the spell, causing him to stop dancing.

"How cute." He mused, reaching into his blazer pocket to pull out his wand. "First off, Evans, if you wanted to get my pants off, all you needed to do was ask. And second off…_Aguamenti_!" He shouted, pointing the stick at me. Immediately, a jet of water burst out of it and hit me, soaking my entire body. A wave of chills ran up and down my back as I pushed my now sopping hair out of my face and wrapped my arms around myself in an attempt to stay warm. The class seemed to be getting much enjoyment out of this-people were cheering, whooping, laughing, and egging us on.

"Funny-_Aguamenti! Redactum Skullus!_" I cried out, not only soaking him back with water, but causing his head to shrink a considerable amount. "Eh, look at that." I said, twirling my wand around in my hands. "Your head is normally sized now."

He glared at me, pointing his wand at his head and muttering the counter-curse, "_Engorgio skullus_." His head returned to the average size. He then gave me such a glare that I actually cringed out of fright- there was a sort of animal look in his eyes, hungry for revenge "_Rictusempra_." However, as soon as the fright had come, it was gone, having been replaced by a cheerful bubbling sensation pooling in my stomach. I began to laugh uncontrollably, clutching at my sides as I tried to breathe.

"Nice to see you laughing instead of yelling for once, Evans." The jinx wore off quickly, and I raised my wand angrily, pointing it at James as I tried to catch my breath. "_Slegulus Eructo_!" A green light burst from my wand, and James quickly rolled behind a desk so as to avoid the hit.

"_Expelliarmus!_"

"_Protego!_"

"_Steleus!"_ I gasped before jumping out of the way, the jinx missing me by only a few inches.

"_Confun_-"

"_That is quite enough!"_ I stopped mid-sentence and gulped, slowly turning around to face the professor, whose face was a violent shade of red from outrage.

"We're sorry, prof-"

"_To the headmaster's office! Now! _The password is 'Treacle Tart_._'" He screamed at us. I slowly exchanged glances with James, who, by the looks of it, felt just as guilty as I did.

"_Now!_" He bellowed. We quickly scurried out of the room, not a word passing between us as we made our way down a few corridors, up several flights of staircases, and finally arrived in front of the gargoyle that stood guard outside of Dumbledore's office.

A moment of silence passed while we waited outside the headmaster's office, both of us waiting for the other to speak. Eventually I gave in and muttered, "Treacle Tart", causing the gargoyle to allow us enterance to the spiraled staircase.

We both hiked up in silence, are shoes making soggy sounds as they walked along the stone staircase. As we reached the door, James held up a hand to knock, which was followed by a soft, "Come in."

Oh, Merlin.

My stomach screamed as we walked inside Dumbledore's office, my lips pursed together in a worried frown, while James just glanced around nervously.

"Both my heads, in trouble? Oh dear…" James and I looked at each other before Dumbledore motioned to two seats in front of his desk. I took the right while James took the left, and we sat there for a moment before Dumbledore spoke.

"Do I want to know why you're both sopping wet, and why your trousers are missing, James?" I didn't say anything, and nor did James, until Dumbledore continued with a "Well?"

"No, sir." We responded in unison, are heads ducked down guiltily. I could feel the blood rushing to my face as the corners of my eyes tingled with unshed tears. Oh, this would permanently scar my almost perfect record…and that stupid Potter boy was the one who caused me to end up here. My previous rage for him bubbled up again.

" I think a three hour detention of cleaning out the quidditch sheds tomorrow should suffice, don't you?" I nodded, and judging from the sudden movement in my peripheral vision, so did James.

"Alright, you may go. However, before you return to your next class, please change into more…_suitable _attire." I muttered another 'yes, sir', before getting up to leave. However, James then spoke, and for the first time ever, I heard his voice ridden with fear.

"Professor, you're not going to send a letter to my parents, are you?" he asked slowly. Dumbledore looked at him from over the top of his half-moon spectacles before picking up a quill and continuing the paperwork on his desk.

"I'm afraid not. I said that if you and Sirius got into anymore trouble, I would call your parents. Tell me if I am wrong, but alas- I don't believe this is Sirius." James gave the older man a grateful smile full of happiness while his yes twinkled with appreciation.

"Thank you, professor." We then departed the office together, me still steaming while James sighed contently.

"Well that wasn't too bad, was it, Evans?" I ignored him while the image of him getting hit with my fist kept replaying in my mind. "Evans? Hey, wait up!"

I walked even faster towards the Gryffindor common room, my heeled shoes making small clicking noises with every step I took. I could hear his own saturated footsteps getting closer behind me, which caused me to just quicken my own.

"Evans! Evans, hey- _Lily!" _he cried, grabbing my upper arm. I stopped in place, my vision blurring with angry tears as I struggled to free myself from his hold on me. I could tell of his hesitance before he spoke in an uncertain voice. "How…how did you find out it was fake?"

"Re-_mus,"_ I said, my voice cracking as my throat burned and choked from holding back livid sobs. Damn, I was getting emotional.

"Lily, are you…_are you crying?" _I irritably brushed at my eyes, trying to wipe the salty liquid away.

"N-No." I stuttered out, refusing to look at the idiotic boy still gripping my arm. Eventually, though, he took his other hand and grabbed my chin between his thumb and forefinger, causing my eyes to meet his.

"What's, er, wrong?" He asked sheepishly, as if he already knew the answer, which I'm sure he did.

"Potter!" I cried, glaring at him as droplets of tears clung to my eyelashes. "You made me think I was _pregnant! _You can't even imagine the emotional baggage I've been carrying around! And you can't believe how painful it is throwing up every morning for a _week_! My teeth have probably begun to rot from all that stomach acid! And lying to me about Jonathan? Merlin, what's _wrong _with you? That's just cruel and mean and-"

James pulled my body nearer to his until eventually I was in close enough range for him to encircle myself in his arms. Finally, all the angry tears I had been holding back came out as I burst into sobs, punching his chest with all the anger I possessed. "You-bloody-idiot!" I cried, hitting him with every word. He took it all in stride, though.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know you'd be so upset over this. If I did, I wouldn't have done it, I was just having a stupid, immature laugh…" I continued to hit him until all the strength I had left vanished, and then I just stood there in an embrace with James, me crying while he stroked my hair softly.

"You're a prat, I hope you know that…"I murmured softly, removing myself from his arms while rubbing my eyes and hiccupping.

He chuckled, closing his eyes for a moment before opening them and whispering, "I know."

_**A/N I have school tomorrow, aghh. I have to upload this quickly before it gets too late, I still have to brush my teeth and wash my face, etc…**_

_**Thank you to all of those who have reviewed, favorited, and alerted this story. You guys are great(:**_

_**Please R&R! Chapters may take a little longer to upload because school is starting again, but with enough encouraging reviews, I might be able to get it done a bit faster.**_

_**THE DANCE IS NEXT CHAPTER! :D I'm so excited(:**_

_**Kay, so goodnight(:**_


	6. Chapter 6

"Come on, Evans." James pleaded playfully. "Stop being so childish, you can't stay mad at me forever." He added, sticking his hands in his pockets- however, since there were no pants for him to do so, his hands just jabbed at his leg. James coughed awkwardly and allowed his arms to fall limp as his sides instead. Putting his hands in his pockets was always a very well known habit of his. I let a small smile grace my lips, but made sure my hair slid over my face like a curtain so James wouldn't see it.

Bloody _prick. _Pregnancy isn't something to joke around with, didn't he know that? Oh, how my blood boiled just thinking about it. What did I ever see in this stupid boy?

"Evans…" He whined, pettily following every step of mine with slumped shoulders and a slouched figure. Oh no, he wouldn't guilt me into forgiving him.

I stuck my nose in the air, crossing my arms over my chest stubbornly while walking into the common room. "Well, I fancy taking a shower before my next class. Care to join me?" I let out a disgruntled sound, glaring at him from beneath my wet hair.

"No."

He shrugged, "It was worth a try." I shook my head before walking up the stairs to my dorm and wrenching open the door.

"_Care to join me?" _God, what was wrong with him? Like I would ever want to _shower _with him…

A blush then crept up onto my face, my cheeks reddening as my mind wandered about the many possibilities of what would happen if we _did _take a shower together…

After changing into more suitable attire and putting my hair up in a casually elegant, high ponytail, I reapplied my makeup and walked downstairs to continue to my next class.

* * *

"He did _what?" _Macy and Alice said at the same time, their mouths dropping. Violet nodded, her face very solemn and expressionless.

"You very well heard me, ladies. Now, what are we going to do about it?" The brunette girl then asked before her eyes glanced at the doorway and stayed there. James walked through the great hall enterance for supper, his hair wet from, most likely, a shower, and his shoulders slouching slightly.

"Let's go talk to him before he gets to his stupid Marauder friends." Macy growled uncharacteristically. The three of them stood up and approached the seventeen year old boy, who looked up at the figures coming closer to him.

He muttered a cuss word under his breath before turning around to walk the other way. Soon, though, he found his hand being grabbed, along with both of his forearms, and felt himself begging pushed against the wall by three girls. He sighed, not having half the heart to fight back.

"James Potter, what in Merlin's name is wrong with you, you lousy, arrogant, awful, brainless, git?" Violet hissed, grabbing the front of his collar. James' eyebrow rose before he delicately picked off Violet's hand from its hold on his collar.

"I've been asking myself that question for years…" he murmured, his voice sounding distant and faraway.

"You really took it a step too far this time, James." Macy stated casually, not unlike if she had been stating the weather.

"Trust me, I know." James' voice faltered slightly as Alice suddenly pushed him against the wall and stood on her tippy-toes so her face was level with his.

"Listen, Potter, I swear, if we've found out you've pulled something like this again, I will _personally _rip your genitals from your body so as you lose the ability to ever shag again or have children. Is that clear?"

James nodded, his eyes widening at the threat. Alice glared at him for a moment before she lowered herself, flicking her hair, which had been messed up in her fury, over her shoulder.

"Nice to see we understand each other." She said, smiling to herself. Macy gaped at her while Violet impressively patted her shoulder ("My little girl is growing up." She had exclaimed proudly).

"So we'll see you tomorrow, then! We've put a lot of planning into this dance, hope you like it! Bye!" Violet, Alice, and Macy began to walk away, a smile on each of their faces as the waved goodbye to the bewildered boy over his shoulders. James waved back uncertainly before speaking.

"I _swear_ they get more confusing every day."

* * *

"_J-James," I moaned, my breath hitching in my throat. His hands worked skillfully up my bare back, his lips trailing soft kisses on my collarbone and neck. I let out a soft, husky sound of delight, and I could feel him smirk on my skin as I pulled at his untidy, black hair._

_His lips found mine again, and he kissed me hungrily, his eyes burning with desire and longing. His fingers found their way to my hair, which was sprawled out in cascades over the white sheets. My hands crawled up his spine, tracing the lines of muscle and bones, admiring how his skin was soft in some places and taut in others. His mouth moved to a sensitive spot behind my ear, and I arched my body in pleasure, feeling wonderful, and yet terrified, at the same time._

"_Mmmm…" a low rumble erupted from his chest as he lowered himself onto me, our stomachs kissing and our mouths meeting again._

"_W-what?" I asked, speaking in a soft, low whisper. Once again, I could feel him smirk against my lips as they moved down to my neck, tasting the flesh there. I squirmed in enjoyment and let a small gasp escape my lips._

"_I could get used to this…" He breathed out as a pool of heat collected in my stomach. I hopelessly clutched the tufts of his hair, closing my eyes in ecstasy, as I willed myself not to think of anything but of this moment, of this time…of him. Nothing else mattered. _

"_Lily…" He groaned softly, his thumbs rubbing circles on my cheeks._

"_Yes?"_

"_Lily, wake up!" What? When did James turn into a girl? I pulled my head back and nearly screamed; James' face being replaced with Violet's._

"_Lily, get up!"_

"What?" I yelled, sitting upright in bed. My heart hammered desperately in my chest as my cheeks continued to flush. Sweat trickled down the side of my head, and as I raised a hand to wipe it, I noticed that I was shaking.

Oh, Merlin. What was I doing, dreaming dreams of such a nature? And with none other than…

Even at the mere thought of the name, the hairs on the back of my neck rose, and I let out a shaky breath as I slowly opened my eyes to look into Violet's startlingly yellowish-brown ones.

"You okay? Looks like you were having a nightmare," _Oh, but how it was the complete opposite…_ "It doesn't matter anyway. It's time to get up! You have detention today, remember?"

I groaned. Of course, the night before my detention with James, I had to have a dream like _that._ I bet he planned it. I bet he made that shower comment _just _so that he could torture me slowly with my own wandering thoughts.

"Okay, I'm up, I'm up." I ruffled my hair and yawned before picking up a towel and walking into the bathroom. After a quick cold shower to wake myself up, I wrapped the towel around me and walked over to my closet.

After settling on a pair of flare jeans, dotted black and pink rain boots, and a grey college sweatshirt I had brought with me from home ("Who's Princeton? He sounds charming… is he royal?" Violet had once asked me when I wore this), I dried my hair, deciding to leave it down, and walked out of the dorm room, yawning as I waved goodbye.

"How nice of you to join us, Ms. Evans…you're fifteen minuets late." Madame Hooch said disapprovingly as I walked onto the quidditch pitch.

"Sorry, ma'am." I said, stifling a yawn once again. James was already there, wearing a pair of faded, dark jeans, a maroon hoodie, and a frown.

"Yes, well… I suppose its okay. Alright, here is what you will be doing today." Madame Hooch began to walk over the quidditch shed. "You will take your time today to clean out this shed, putting all the equipment that doesn't work into a pile at the bottoms of the stands over there, and polishing and dusting off the equipment that does work. You may begin." She then walked away, heading back up to the castle.

James shrugged, "Sounds easy enough…" I ignored the comment.

He grabbed the handle and pulled it open. A huge cloud of dust flew out at us, and I shrieked before coughing, slamming my eyes shut and fanning the air in front of me. Then, all the containments of the closet fell out, not unlike someone puking. I surveyed the equipment on the ground- it seemed like no one had touched this closet for at least a decade, and the last people that _did _touch it had just thrown all the equipment inside and slammed the door shut so that the next person that opened it would be a victim to an avalanche of gear.

After a moment or so, I pulled out my wand, pointing it at the mess. I first focused my attention on a bludger, which looked as though it had been split in half. I flicked my wand, causing the bludger to be thrown into where the pile would be of damaged equipment. I then examined a snitch, whose wings had fluttered hopefully before falling limp at its side. I tossed that into the pile, too. James followed suit soon after I had began. Neither of us spoke.

A half hour passed…now an hour…now two hours…I put the final good broom into the 'still working' pile and exhaustedly lowered my arm, stuffing my wand into my pocket at the same time. I checked my watch – it was only ten thirty, leaving us another half hour of detention. Or, as I had begun to call this detention, another half hour of awkward _hell. _

"…" An uncomfortably silence filled the air before James made his way over to the good pile. He grabbed a broom, examined it for a second, and then mounted himself onto it.

"Um, what do you reckon you're doing? This is detention, Potter, not playtime." I said angrily. Yet I could not help but be amused as I watched him on the broom, his feet now just barely grazing the ground.

"Well, there's another half hour left. Why not? You can come riding too, I won't tell anyone." James said, a shy smile making its way onto his face. My own face paled, and I coughed into my hand.

"T-That's okay, I'll pass." I said quickly, a red tinge creeping up onto my cheeks. James raised an eyebrow at me, reading my facial expression.

"Don't tell me you're…?" He asked, the smile on his face growing more and more evil and smirk-ish by the second. When I just squirmed uncomfortably under his gaze, he burst into laughter. "You're afraid of flying a broom, aren't you?"

"N-No! I just prefer to stay on the ground, that's all…" I responded, twiddling my thumbs nervously.

"Oh, so its heights you're afraid of? Or both, is it? Wow," He rolled his eyes, as if my fears were stupid.

"At least I'm not afraid of bees." I hissed coldly. James looked as though he were pondering something for a moment before he lowered himself to the ground, hopping off his broom.

"Alright, come here." He outstretched his hand to me, and I eyed it suspiciously. "Come on, do you trust me?"

"_No, of course I don't trust you, you pulled an awful prank on me that wasn't even funny, just really hurtful, and I bet you say that to girls all the time and they just start to swoon over you, right? Yeah, well I'm not just another girl, Potter, and in case you've forgotten, I'm still mad at you, you prat, and-"_

"…Yes." I said slowly. His face beamed while I placed my hand into his, and the next thing I knew, he was lifting my body up onto the broom.

"W-What're you doing?" I cried, my eyes widening in fear. James secured a hand on the shaft of the broom, the other on the small of my back.

"Helping you conquer your fears!" He exclaimed happily. He then pushed me off the ground, and then I was flying, and it was terrorizing and exciting and horrifying and simply delightful, all at the same time.

After a few moments of being in the air, James had picked up another broom and flew up after me. "I-I'm flying!" I proclaimed loudly, gazing at the scenery around me. I could see all the mountains from here, along with the top of the Hogwarts Castle and the Black Lake – my eyes wandered lower until they spotted ants. Wait, no, those were people…

Oh, Merlin, I was up _high. _

I started to panic, my breath hitching in my throat as I tried desperately to lower myself to the ground. However, I had never flown a broom before (nor did I ever plan on flying again), and nearly fell off in the process of doing so.

I clutched onto the wooden part and closed my eyes. _Don't look down, don't look down, don't look down…_

"You okay, Evans?" James had flown in next to me, one hand on the shaft of his own broom, the other repositioning the glasses on his face. I nodded and gulped, keeping my eyes closed shut.

"Good! You're conquering your fear! Come on, let's race. Ready, set…go!" James sped off, and I flinched at the sudden motion. However, I think the broom mistook that as a sign to go, because a moment later I was racing around the quidditch pitch with James.

Soon enough, I had gotten the hang of the broom – I raced with James, did tricks with him, chased him (and vice versa), and we even played pretend for a bit like I did when I was four.

"Run, Princess Lily! The dragon's chasing after us!" Cried Sir James the Brilliant (if you hadn't guessed, he had thought of the name himself).

"Oh, fair knight, alas – I've been hit!" I stopped my broom, dramatically lowering myself to the ground until I 'fell' off of it and rolled into the snow lining the bottom of the pitch.

"No, Princess! Take that, you evil dragon!" James brandished his wand as if it were a sword. He then made a pitiful, hurt roaring noise. "Aha! You've met your match, dragon, for I have beaten you!" He then turned to me, as I still lay limp on the ground. "Princess!" He yelled, bolting downwards toward me.

"No, not the Lovely Lady, Princess Lily…" He mocked sobs, stroking the hair out of my eyes.

"Regrettably, there is no heartbeat – she is dead. I will now place this final kiss on her lips as a way to remember the beautiful lady had fallen in love with." I opened my eyes to see his face approaching closer too mine, his lips stuck out slightly. I raised my finger, putting it in front of his mouth, stopping the action.

"Oh, no you don't, I'm still mad at you." He opened his eyes and winked, his signature smirk making its way onto his face.

"But you're talking to me, and that's an improvement from yesterday." I rolled my eyes.

"Whatever."

"Oh, how glorious, you've finished!" James and I turned our heads to see Madame Hooch walking over to us, a pleased smile on her face. "Oh, what a fantastic job you've done! Well, you guys are all done for today! Go on, you're free." I smiled at her, picking myself up and brushing off my jeans.

"Thank you, ma'am. Come on, Potter." I said, grabbing his wrist. He bid her a goodbye, and the two of us made our way up to the Gryffindor common room.

"The dance is tonight." James said once we were in the warmth of the castle. I nodded.

"Right."

"I think it should be fun. Promise to save me a dance?" James asked, watching me from the corner of his eyes while he stuck his hands in his pockets.

"You forget that I haven't forgiven you yet." I murmured amusedly as I watched him whimper childishly.

"Evaaaans…" He said, drawling out my name in a groan. I smiled, clambering through the portrait hole, and walking to the staircase.

"See you later tonight then, Potter." He sighed.

"Tonight. Have fun with _Jonathan." _He said, spitting out the name as if just saying it left a bad taste in his mouth – which I'm sure it did, in his case.

"Just as long as you have fun with _Jillian." _I snapped back irritably before frowning at him and marching up the stairs to my room. Merlin, what an unpleasant child he was.

* * *

I nervously looked at my appearance in the bathroom, pulling at the top of my dress and spinning around to see how the other side of me looked.

"Wow, Lily, you look gorgeous." Alice admired while she stepped into the bathroom wearing a long, black, one-shouldered dress. A sash covered her waist, and her hair was tied into a low bun. She mirrored a kind of natural beauty – her dress wasn't sparkly, colorful, or elaborate. It was rather plain, but in a way that she made it look beautiful without even trying.

"So do you! Oh, Frank won't be able to keep his hands _off_ of _you _tonight." I said while laughing at the ongoing blush on Alice's face.

"I really hope that's not the same case for Zachary…" murmured Macy unsurely while she finished zipping up the back of her dress. "Does this look alright?"

Macy was wearing a strapless white gown that was jeweled on the lining of the top. The silky, white material fell to the ground – it gave her a look of purity and innocence, with a dash of glamour to add in there for a chic, but I'm-not-trying-that-hard effective. Her hair was down to her shoulders, and for once, was straight, lacking the waves that it usually possessed. The do suited her very, _very _well.

"Stunning, Macy. If Remus doesn't go crazy tonight, than we'll know it's because he likes men." Violet said as she finished applying her lip liner. She straightened her back, flicking her hair over one shoulder.

"And obviously, I'm looking striking for Amos, yeah?" she asked, twirling around in her dress. It was almost the exact opposite of Macy's – It was black with gems and glitter, and tight on her body, although it fell to the ground just as gracefully as Macy and Alice's had. A long slit went up on the side, stopping at mid-thigh so as to expose the tan skin of one of her slender, long legs. Her long, dark hair was tied half up, half down, with voluptuous, bouncy curls cascading down her back.

"Obviously, darling. I'm sure Sirius will also enjoy that." I added, winking at her. She smirked back, playfully hitting me with her hand.

"As will Jonathan _and _James with you're appearance as well."

I glanced back at the mirror in front of me, taking in my appearance. I was wearing a white halter top dress that had an open back, and that flowed out gracefully to the ground. It didn't puff, and it wasn't tight – it was just simply clinging to me and falling to the ground elegantly. Just above my waist was tied off with a small, black bow in the front. Above from that point was the same white material of the dress below me, but was covered in an ostentatious, black lace.

My hair had been difficult to do, Violet had said, because there were so many things that could be done with it. However, she had finally decided on a bun that she fixed up with a long, pearled clip. She allowed two small strands of my auburn hair to fall into my face, and had curled them, so as the _'framed my facial structure perfectly'_, in the words of Violet Anne Tatum.

"You think?" I murmured quietly, soaking in my appearance a little bit more while applying a soft pink shimmer to my lips.

"Think? Babe, I _know."_ She announced, a mischievous grin forming on her lips. Before I could question it, however, I heard a soft yell from the area outside the dorm room.

"Lily? Lily, its Jonathan, and Zachary and Amos are here, too. Are you three ready to go? Frank had a little…" Jonathan paused for a moment, "…accident, and won't be here for about another ten minutes, Alice." The girl shrugged, kicking off her heels and walking out to the dorm and onto her bed.

"Okay, thank you!" She yelled back. I stepped into my black, strappy heels, and along with Violet and Macy, opened the door.

Jonathan stood in black dress robes, a lily in his hand. "Wow," He breathed, taking in the sight of me, while Macy and Violet greeted their own dates. "You look great." He said finally, smiling. He shared a look with Zachary, as if to say '_damn, mate, I've picked a good one' _with his eyes.

"As do you, Jonathan." He then handed me the lily, which I had just noticed was a corsage. I slipped it on my wrist, but not as a small frown crossed my lips – wasn't the guy supposed to put it on for you? That was one of the basics to being a gentleman and good partner.

"Thank you." He said, smiling at me. I returned it before he offered his arm to me, following Violet, Macy, Zachary, and Amos down the stairs.

The ball was being held in the great hall, and once we stepped inside of it, it was unrecognizable. Silk black and white material draped over the walls, and the only lights in the room were floating orbs of silver energy. The stone floor had been fixed to be white and black tiles done in an elaborate pattern and polished until they were sparkling.

The tables that had been selected were clear and looked like ice, along with the punch bowls and food buffet tables. The enchanted ceiling was glowing with stars, and a sort of sophistication and mystery radiated from them as we entered the hall.

My eyes quickly scanned over the room, only to stop on the Marauders. All of them wore silver vests, ties, and cummerbunds, with the traditional black dress robes over them. "Figures they wouldn't wear black or white." Violet said, scoffing, as the three of us and our dates made our way over to a table to sit down together, saving two seats for Alice and Frank. However, I kept my eyes pealed on them as Jonathan led me after him.

Sirius was whispering into Marissa's ears while she toyed with his tie. Eugh, gross, public displays of affection always made me nauseous.

Remus was exchanging (what looked like) a somewhat intellectual conversation with Olivia, though she seemed to be a bit lost at times.

And then, there was James. He kept leaning in teasingly towards Jillian, who was wearing a more than revealing, skin tight white dress with a deep cut in the back. She would flirtingly toy with his hair or arm, and he would just smirk back, the same smirk he always uses when he smirks at me…

"Oh, there you are Alice! Frank!" Macy said happily, prying her eyes away from the Marauder's table, too – It seemed she was having the same problem that I was, except for her it applied to Remus.

Wait, what problem was I talking about? I didn't fancy _James_, of all people, that's ridiculous.

Dinner was extremely satisfying, with a tastefully simple filet, along with a salad and a side of potatoes and a pack of peppermint candies for your breath. Only a moment after finishing my peppermint, Jonathan had asked me to dance.

I took his hand followed him to the floor. Once we got to the very center, he placed a hand _lowly _on my back, an inch or two away from my bottom, and the other intertwined itself forcefully with my own hand.

I grimaced as soon as we began to dance – this just didn't feel…_right._ We swayed like every other couple on the floor, but we did not converse. It was tense, and dare I say, awkward.

The slow song ended and was replaced with an upbeat one. Couples began to pair off around us and – I gulped – began to _dirty dance. _

Before I could retreat, his hands were on my waist, and I was forced to rub my body against his. He wasn't really dancing back – I, for a brief moment, thought this is what it would feel like to grind against a wall. Jonathan was being…emotionless. Un-lively.

Not very fun.

Where was the playful relationship I wanted us to have? He seemed so…_serious_.

We continued to dance until the song ended and a tango came on. "Can you tango?" Jonathan asked, extending a hand to me. No, no more dancing with him…

"No," I lied quickly. He frowned and shrugged.

"Oh, that's okay. You don't mind if I dance with someone else, than?" I shook my head, and he called over to Marissa. I raised an eyebrow curiously; where was Sirius? Wasn't she his date?

My mouth curved into an all-knowing smirk as I saw him and Violet dancing rather…er…_passionately. _It seemed as if they were angry with each other. I then noticed how they kept trying to one-up the other – oh, so they were competing, in a way. It was actually quite amusing to watch.

The song ended yet again, and I found myself going up to dance with Macy and Alice. Hours passed, the four of us (we were soon later joined by Violet) dancing like only best friends would do, singing lyrics to the songs played and dancing wildly and expertly.

This was fun. Dancing with Jonathan didn't even compare with this. Heck, dancing with _any _boy couldn't compare to this. My friends were my life and soul here at Hogwarts – they were what kept me going, what helped me through the worst, who cheered me through the best. This was what dancing should be like.

Another grinding song came, and I found myself sitting down with Macy as Violet went off to go dance with Amos, along with Alice to Frank.

"What a hit this dance has been, eh?" I looked up and saw James approaching me, his tie done loosely around his neck and his jacket off.

"Oh yeah, definitely." I replied enthusiastically. The music seemed to get louder. James looked at me, smirking, before extending his hand.

"Come on, Lily, dance with me." I looked from him to the floor-the song playing was one of a faster beat, with a bit of European edge mixed into it. Its tune was…_suggestive. _Unsurprisingly,yet again, the majority of the population was dirty dancing, which meant that if James and I were going to dance to this particular song…

Absolutely not. I would not dirty dance with _Potter_, of all people. _"No, Potter. That's disgusting. I would hate to rub my body against yours in an extremely sexually satisfying way-"_

"I don't see why not." Dammit. Guess my brain and heart weren't agreeing tonight. I saw Macy smile in my peripheral vision, and I could of sworn I heard her mutter something along the lines of _'I knew it.'_

He raised his eyebrows in surprise (I'm sure he hadn't expected me to say yes…) before he shrugged and extended his hand to me. I took it, and with little to no effort, he lifted me to my feet and began to lead me over to the dance floor.

Once we arrived, he, with a sort of expertise (most likely acquired from the many girls he had done this with), spun me around so that he was facing my back. I could feel his body getting closer to mine, albeit tentatively.

He lightly grabbed my waist, me placing my hands on top of his, and pulled me closer to himself until my back was pressed against him. Slowly and hesitantly, he started to move his body against mine-I could sense his uncertainty with the tenseness of his muscles.

_I don't want this, I don't want this, I don't want this,_ my mind continued to scream at me. Yet, as my brain told me no, my body was responding differently-it was moving back against his, and in a way that was just…_right. _Not at _all_ like dancing with Jonathan_. _Our bodies seemed to compliment each other- every groove and crevice and curve of my body seemed to fit perfectly against his, almost as if they were made for each other.

Surely, I was just imagining it, wasn't I? It was just mere coincidence. Or perhaps I was overanalyzing the situation. There was also always the possibility that someone spiked the punch and I simply had too much of it…

Yet, as I stood here, my eyes closed and body moving against James' in a way that was simply pleasing, I couldn't help but wonder if I was wrong. My hips grinded against his, my naked back touching the soft, silk material of his vest, and his hands moved to the front of my stomach and rested there. All the while, our bodies moved, pressed against each other. An exciting thought moved to the front of my mind- _I was dirty dancing with James. _We moved skillfully, passionately-almost as if we had done this before.

He grabbed my hand, expertly spinning me around, until he pulled me even closer than we were before. My chest and stomach pressed against his own, and my hands somehow crept up his body until they were hooked around his neck, pulling at the tufts of dark hair on the back of his head. His arms enclosed around my figure, one hand resting on the small of my back, the other on my waist. Our anatomies moved against each others in the shadows of the dimly lit room in a way that could be described as nothing less than passionate.

I breathed in his scent, as I felt his own shallow breaths against my forehead. I opened my eyes to look up into his own, and as my green orbs starred into his hazel ones, I saw emotion: fervor. Ardor. _Lust. _

His hands worked up my sides, his thumbs grazing my outer abdomens as his fingers left tingling sensations on the bare skin of my back. A thought suddenly struck me- I had never seen James without his glasses on. At this notion, one of my hands moved to the front of his head, leisurely pulling at his glasses until they were off his face. I took the spectacles and tucked them in between the flap of his silver vest and his dress shirt- that was better. Now there was nothing in the way of our eyes finally meeting each others with no obstructions.

And then, the song ended, all too soon.

Dammit, just when things were getting good…

We both stopped, remaining in each other's embrace, before I coughed, extracting my hands from around his neck, while taking a step back. My body suddenly felt cold.

"Well…" I started, my face reddening as I lowered my gaze to the ground, "I think-"

James had taken a step toward me only a moment after I had taken one back. He grabbed my hand, placing his other hand on my waist. I looked up, startled.

"Can't I get just _one more dance?" _he asked, his face beaming. I laughed, resting my hand on his shoulder.

"Just one more dance." I repeated. He nodded, his eyes meeting mine in a much softer way than they had just a moment ago. We swayed adoringly to the slow song, not talking whatsoever- sometimes, the perfect moment did not include any words at all.

Then, I felt as though a magnetic force was pulling me closer to him. I think he felt it, too, because suddenly, we were both leaning forward, our mouths nearing towards each others, our lips inching forward…

"Mind if I cut in?" What?

I looked to my right and saw Jonathan standing there, a very forced smile on his face. Where was Marissa? My eyes gazed over the room quickly- Ahh, there she was, slow dancing with Sirius, her body draped against his while her head rested on his shoulder. Directly next to them stood Violet and Amos, Violet's head also resting on his shoulder. As both couples revolved on the spot, Sirius and Violet glared at each other whenever they were in sight of the other-Amos and Marissa were oblivious to it, of course. I decided to ask her about it later.

My eyes continued to scan the room until they stopped on Macy and Remus' dancing figures. Remus had a small, shy smile on his face while Macy looked just absolutely _happy. _

"Uh, sure thing, mate." James let go of my waist and took a step back. He reached into his vest and pulled back on his glasses. I felt as though my eyes were glued to his face as I watched his lips form a somewhat sad smile.

"Thanks." And then, my perfect moment ended. The night seemed duller, and it was when I was there, in Jonathan's arms, that I learned something.

I might just harbor some feelings for a certain black haired, hazel eyed boy.

_**A/N oh hey there ;) come here often?**_

_**For those of you who are wondering who '.cool.r.u' and 'temperanceaurora' are, they are my stupid, idiotic friends who I have now gotten interested in fanfiction. '.cool.r.u' is the base of my character Macy, and 'temperanceaurora' is the base for my character Violet. Check her out, she's new to this site :)**_

_**Also if any of you are interested in doing fanart, please be my guest and go right ahead with it for this story. I actually think it's kind of cool and I'd be superduper happy so..:) but you don't HAVE to if you don't want to yaa know.**_

_**Sorry if this didn't live up to the expectations you guys had of the dance…:/ hope it will do though. I might post links to all the girls' dresses on my profile, so watch for that!**_

_**When Sirius and Violet are dancing, i was imagining the scene of kat and nick dancing from 'the wedding date' during the dance lessons. it starts off with them mad at each other and whatnot, but in the end their happy.**_

_**Song when they were cleaning out the quidditch shed and flying: hanging by a moment by lifehouse.**_

_**Song they grinded to: Stereo love, and I'm not sure who it's by.**_

_**First song they slow danced to: Any song you want it to be! I had 'fall for you' in mind by secondhand serenade, but you know, that's just me.**_

_**R&R PLEASE!(:**_


	7. Chapter 7

"So what was up with you and Sirius last night?" I asked Violet once we settled ourselves into a compartment on the train. She shrugged, pulling out her lip balm and a pocket mirror.

"I'm afraid I don't understand your question." I rolled my eyes, all the while smiling – Violet only avoided the subject of boys when she was embarrassed of something related to the subject. Or in this case, some_one _related to the subject.

"Come on, Vi. If I remember correctly, I reckon you guys were dancing last night. And when you were with Amos and he was with Marissa, I swore I saw you glaring at each other…care to explain?"

She let out a huff, slamming her compact mirror with enough force so that it made a loud shutting sound. "That was nothing, I promise you. How could you think that I _fancy _Sirius? Ridiculous." She added as an afterthought, a disgusted look settling on her face.

I leaned towards her, a smirk growing bigger on my face. "Violet, dear," I said in a falsely sweet voice, "I never said _anything_ about you fancying him."

Her gaze faltered before she looked up, "What're you trying to say?"

"I'm trying to say," I started, "That you already had the idea of fancying him in your head. Which means it is almost perfectly likely that you fancy Sir-"

She scrambled across the seat and clamped her hand over my mouth, her eyes viscously darting around the area outside of the sliding compartment door. "Don't you dare say what I think you're about to say out loud." She hissed venomously. I gingerly picked off her hand from my mouth and placed it back at her side. Macy and Alice eyed us silently – I had almost forgotten they were there, for each of them were keeping to the other and watching Violet and I talk for the most part.

"The first step to fixing a problem is admitting that you have one!" I sang at her. Suddenly, we all lurched slightly forward.

"Looks like we're at the platform." Macy stated, standing up and pulling out her trunks. I followed suit, grabbing out my own two trunks from above the seat, and wheeled them out of the compartment with Macy and Violet trailing me – Alice had told us she needed to do something beforehand (I reckon it was along the lines of giving Frank a little something to remember her by before they parted for vacation).

"Hey, Evans." I turned around to see James strolling after me, clad in dark jeans, a white tee shirt, and a black blazer. Damn, why was he so attractive? It made my resistance to my feelings for him even harder when he wore such attractive clothing that added to his already attractive appearance. Macy and Violet eyed me uncertainly.

"Go on, I'll catch up with you in a second." Macy shrugged while Violet offered me a wink before they both walked off together. I turned towards James, whose eyes had not once left me. The intensity of his gaze made my face redden, and I nervously tugged on the bottom of my pea coat as I spoke.

"Yes, Potter?" He watched me for a moment before he took a step forward.

"Have a good vacation, Lily." His arms found their way around my back to encircle me within them.

Oh damn.

I felt my cheeks flare up considerably before I shakily hugged him back, a small smile forming on my lips. I really could get used to this.

One of his hands dropped a small box into the pocket of my pea coat. He then extracted himself from me, his eyes still gazing fixedly into my own. I raised an eyebrow before reaching into my pocket to retrieve the small box.

His hand quickly gripped onto mine, preventing the action. "Don't open it until Christmas, alright?" I nodded, captivated, before I shook myself out of the trance and grinned up at him.

"Okay. I promise, but it's the same for you and your present." He nodded, his hazel eyes boring holes into mine. We stood there for a few moments in silence, never breaking eye contact. Something about his eyes was mesmerizing – I couldn't bring myself to look away.

James then leaned forward, delicately placing a soft kiss on my cheek. His lips lingered on my flesh for a few moments before he pulled away leisurely, his face lighting up in color a bit.

"Merry Christmas, Lily." I opened my mouth to speak, but found my voice gone. I settled on just nodding dumbly as my entire body went numb and rose in temperature. He put his hands back into his jean pockets, gave a small nod that was accompanied by a small smile, and began to stride away. I don't know how long I stood there, in that exact spot, for. At one point, though, my hand had crept up slowly to my cheek and rested on the spot where his lips had brushed against my skin – the area tingled as I touched it, and I inhaled deeply as I relished in the beautiful scent of cologne and quidditch known as James Potter that had been left behind as he had walked away.

Merlin, I had to get a hold of myself.

I gripped my luggage again and began to make my way out of the train.

"Lily-Poo!" Not a moment after I had stepped off the train, a merry, feminine voice had yelled out my nickname. I cringed at the awfully embarrassing nickname, but couldn't help but smile anyway.

"Mum!" My mother was running over to me, her long, wavy auburn hair flying behind herself while her pale, freckled arms were outstretched so as to get me with one of her infamous tackle-hugs. Running behind her was my Dad, his chestnut locks slicked back on his head and his startlingly green eyes (the ones I had inherited, no less) locking happily with mine.

"Dad!" Both my parents, once reaching me, wrapped their arms quickly around my figure, gripping me so much to the point where breathing seemed impossible.

"Oh, honey-bear, we missed you so much!" I could feel my cheeks heating up as I hugged back and hastily pushed them off of me.

"I missed you guys too, but not here, okay?"

They both eyed each other knowingly before my mum leaned in and whispered, "Okay, who is he?" My dad offered a wink and that was followed with the words, "Can we meet him?"

"N-No! And there isn't anyone, I promise you. If there was, I would have told you." I said quickly, trying to cool down my face by pressing one of my cold hands to my cheeks. Merlin, could my parents be embarrassing…

"Is it that lad over there?" My dad asked amusedly while pointing off to our left. My eyes followed his finger until I saw Frank a decent space away, starring at me while trying to hide a laugh as his own parents hugged Alice and gave her warm greetings (he must have just introduced her). Oh, great, so someone had seen the previous few acts of my parents…

I shot him a glare, and immediately the smirk on his face vanished. He looked away, paying attention to his own family affairs instead.

"No, dad, that's Alice's boyfriend." My parents both yipped in glee.

"Oh, Alice has a partner? That's wonderful, can we meet him? I'd love to become acquainted with his parents, since we're already acquainted with Alice's…" My mum cried gaily as she began to make her way over to them. I gripped the tail of her scarf, preventing her from doing so.

"Mum, Dad, no offense, but you're both acting like such _muggles. _Can we just start on our way to the car and catch up there?" I asked, although I could not help but hide a smile. I had missed my parents and their horribly thwarting acts.

"Well," My Dad said while sighing, "If that's what you want. Petunia's waiting at home for you; you know how she gets when she's here." I nodded, albeit it was disappointedly. I loved my sister, but she didn't seem to accept me and my magical side, unlike my over accepting parents. Her tolerance ran a bit…_low_ when it came to magic.

The car ride home was extremely entertaining – last summer, I had brought home a wizard rock record, and my parents seem to love it. The entire trip consisted of them belting out lyrics to this new, young band named the Weird Sisters, and their singing consisted of a particular song, _Do the Hippogriff. _I'm not sure if they got the lyrics, though by guessing, I'm sure they didn't, and nor did they care.

Once arriving at our house, I happily opened the door and breathed in the scent I had known my entire life. There was no way to describe the smell, for it was rather distinct. However, the only way I could describe it was that it smelt like _home. _

My house was Tudor style, with long white walls on the outside and wooden beams artfully placed on them. Icicles hung off the siding of the roof, which was also sprinkled lightly with a soft layer of snow. The beautiful yard, complete with a beautiful garden full of lilies and petunias (bet you can't guess why those flowers were the ones my parents decided to plant every year), was buried under the snow – however, I did not mind, for right now, I was just glad to be back at the place where I grew up and with the people I loved.

"Go on inside and say hi to Petunia, we'll bring in your stuff." My mum said while she also stepped out of the car. "Oh, and don't worry, Vernon's not in there." I laughed – my parents did not particularly enjoy my sister's choice of a partner. They believed him to be too…_normal. _Or, I suppose, he's just too normal for them, considering that I was completely abnormal when compared to my sister.

"Thanks." I ran to the front door and thrust it open, my eyes searching for my sister.

"'Tuney?" I yelled, my voice echoing off the walls. The living room door next to me opened leisurely and tensely. A long face popped out from behind it with brown, thin hair sitting on the top of it and a hesitant smile.

"Lily?" I smiled and walked over to my sister. She stepped out from behind the door and opened her arms for a hug. I gave her one, although awkwardly. You see, my sister and I were constantly on and off – we bonded and shared moments of mutuality, although, like normal sisters, we had fights. Right before I had left to go to Hogwarts, we had gotten into a big one. In all honesty, I don't even remember what it was about – but, it was a big enough fight for her to ignore me for the rest of my stay and refuse to see me off at the platform.

"Hey there!" I spoke in an uncertain voice.

"H-Hey to you too!" She responded, her voice wavering. We both pulled back and smiled at each other. Mine was forced, and I'm sure hers was too. We stood there for a few minutes in an uncomfortable silence.

Awkward…

"So! How's Vernon?" I inquired, attempting to get a conversation going.

"Oh, he's great, we're great, everything's just great." She said rapidly, her eyes resting on my jean pockets.

"Relax, Petunia, I'm not going to use magic while I'm here." She seemed to cringe at the word 'magic', but I cold tell that she was secretly reassured.

"Girls? Girls, its Christmas Eve tomorrow. I think we should all retire to bed a bit early, since we're going to church early tomorrow morning, and then we'll going to the Nadeau's for an early supper." My mother said as she walked through the doors, my dad carrying my bags behind her.

"Okay, that's a good idea…" Petunia said, her voice faltering from relief that our awkward moment was over. I nodded, took my bags from my father's hands, and ran up the stairs and into my room.

I dropped my luggage on the ground and lay facedown on my bed, enjoying the delightful sensation as I sunk into the mattress. I had only just realized how tired I really was…

* * *

"Yes, you look fine, mate. Stop being such a girl." James said while rolling his eyes. Sirius tugged on the bottom of his white button down and ran a hand through his wavy, dark hair.

"Shut up."

"Boys! Are you ready to go?" Mrs. Potter called from the other side of the door.

"Yeah, we'll be down in a second." James yelled back while swatting away Sirius' hand from where it was fidgeting with his shirt. Sirius glared at him.

"James, I don't know if you understand this or not, but this is an upper-class wizard Christmas Eve party. More than likely, my entire family will be there, Prongs. I have to dress to impress." Sirius mumbled, checking his appearance in the mirror one more time. James smirked and threw his coat at him.

"Come on, Padfoot, let's go. Merlin, do I hate these parties. I don't even know whose house we're going to, some Melinda Rinaldi's or something like that." James sighed while opening the door to his bedroom and walking down the stairs, Sirius pathetically trailing behind him.

They walked out into the living room, where a chimney stood. Mrs. Potter, a tall, lean, and graceful woman, handed a bowl full of powder to the two teenagers. James stuck his hand in it first and walked over to the fireplace, shouting "_Rinaldi Estate!" _in a loud, clear voice. A massive swarm of green fire then erupted around him, and as it vanished, so did James. Sirius, Mrs. Potter, and Mr. Potter followed suit after him.

The four of them arrived in an exquisite looking living room. Black, slick tiles carpeted the entire area, and massive, beautiful long marble pillars lined the room. Important and sophisticated-looking people stood around the room, glasses of champagne, red wine, and other delicacies in their hands as caterers walked around, offering hors d'oeuvres and other small appetizers on a tray. There were a lot of people there, and from the looks of it, there were more scattered throughout the entire house. Classical Jazz music played throughout the room, and just upon entering the scene, both boys immediately felt bored.

"Oh, the Potter family! How delightful," A somewhat shrill voice called out from behind the four.

"Oh, Melinda, splendid to see you! Thank you for the invitation, dear." Mrs. Potter cried out happily as she greeted the woman. The two of them hugged and briefly kissed each other's cheeks before the woman brought her attention to Sirius and James.

"Oh, you have two sons? I wasn't aware," She murmured amusedly while eying the two boys. Her dark eyes scanned over them, drinking in their appearance, before she smiled in approval. "No matter. My daughter is downstairs with all the other kids. She's very outgoing, I'm sure you'll make friendship with her quickly. You may head down there if you wish; it's just through that door over there." She motioned to a large, white door with black stencils carved into it.

"Thank you, ma'am." Sirius and James chorused. Together, they sauntered off and through the door. As soon as they entered it, loud bursts of upbeat, modern, rock music sounded from below the staircase. Sirius and James eyed each other uncertainly.

"I thought this was all rich kids?" Sirius muttered as they walked down the carpeted steps together.

"Us rich kids have to party too, eh Padfoot?" James offered him a smirk as they reached the bottom of the stairs and turned the corner.

About twenty to thirty kids had arranged themselves in the basement. Some were dancing to the music, while other mingled, and still others played games of wizard assortments, such as Exploding Snap. However, a particular dark haired, tan skinned beauty caught both Sirius and James' attention.

"Violet?" The girl turned around, and upon seeing James and Sirius, grinned.

"Hi! I didn't know you guys were invited!" She ran over to the both of them and threw an arm over each of their shoulders in a double hug. "Welcome!"

"This is your house? I thought it was Melinda Rinaldi's house…" James pondered while scratching his head. She shrugged and extracted herself while flipping a lock of dark hair over her shoulder.

"Parents are divorced. Come on, let me introduce you to the others." She grabbed either of their hands in one of her own and pulled them over to a group of six people.

"Everyone, this is James Potter and Sirius Black." Violet called, gaining the attention of the group.

"That's Miranda, that's Phillip, this is Amy, and of course you know Regulus here. Why didn't you two come together? Oh, it doesn't matter…" Sirius gave his brother a small smile that was returned to him – even though Sirius wasn't technically part of the family anymore, him and his brother were still extremely close. "…this is Juliet, and you already know Rob." James' gaze hardened on the boy, who had previously been Lily's boyfriend of two years.

"Well, I'm going to go upstairs and nick some champagne. Anyone care to join me?" Sirius smirked and extended his arm to her.

"I wasn't aware you were so sneaky, Ms. Tatum. Either way, I would _love _to accompany you in some mischief behavior." Violet rolled her eyes and smiled before pulling him up the stair case. Everyone went back to their mingling, and James stood there alone, a bit uncomfortably. Judging from the various slurs and wobbles coming out of the different kids' mouths, the champagne Violet and Sirius were retrieving wasn't the first alcohol nicked of the night.

"It's nice to meet you, James. I'm Juliet." A shorter girl with long ebony hair stared up at James, a brilliant smile on her lips. Her already low v-neck dress seemed to drop lower as she looked up at James from under her long, painted eyelashes. James tried to focus on her face, training his eyes not to wander to…other areas.

"Nice to meet you too." He offered her a smirk and put his hands in his black trouser pockets.

She seemed to watch him longingly for a moment before she stood on her tip toes and whispered in his ear, "You know, there's a closet right over there…"

James' face flushed in color at the suggestion as her fingers encircled his wrist and pulled him over towards it. "We can…_play_ _games _in there, if you'd like." Still, James stayed silent while his face colored, and she retched open the door and dragged him enticingly inside of it. At first, James was worrisome about what the other kids would think – he then noticed none of them were sober enough to care.

"I have to warn you, though…I _always win." _She drawled out, closing the door slowly while creeping a finger up his chest seductively.

"Do you like to play games, James?" her lips then moved dangerously close to his own, and if there had been light in the closet, you would have seen James' cheeks turning a deep maroon. "Because I do…"

"U-Um, Juli-" a finger pressed lightly onto his mouth, and a quieting sound escaped from her lips as her other fingers closed around his belt. They slowly began to undo the buckle, and it was then that James finally got a hold of himself.

"Juliet, I met you about a minute ago." James said slowly as one of his eyebrows arched. She backed up a bit, looking up at him.

"So?"

"So, I don't want this. It's wrong, especially because I'm-" Juliet gasped in horror and took a larger step back, nearly falling over a broom.

"You're not gay, are you? Oh no, I almost hooked up with a _gay _guy! I bet that Sirius guy is your partner, too! Oh, that's disgusting…" she rambled, cringing. James briefly thought of agreeing to it so as to avoid any other future conflict with this girl, but then realized his reputation wasn't worth that bruising.

"If you let me finish," James breathlessly started, annoyance crawling up on him, "I was going to say I can't do this because I'm in love with another girl."

A moment of silence passed before the realization of what James had said seemed to dawn on Juliet. "Oh, well that's depressing." Her lips contorted into an angry pout, and she crossed her arms over her chest. "Do I know her? She better watch out, because I'm moving in on you if she hasn't already."

"Merlin, you're easy…" James whispered under his breath. Luckily, she hadn't heard his comment, for the fumbling of him clipping his belt back together had muffled his voice.

"Well, James, if you're single the next time I see you, you can bet we will finish this." She winked at him and pushed open the door, strutting out of it with a sort of alluring swag. James stayed there for a moment before he groaned and ran a hand through his hair.

"I just turned down an extremely _fit_ girl for a completely unrequited love. If only Lily knew the things that I do for her…"

* * *

Sunlight pierced my closed eyes from the window next to my bed, and I groaned and threw an arm over my head to block it out. No sooner than I had, however, my eyes burst open, and a smile etched onto my face.

I leapt out of bed and swung open my door, running out of it gleefully. I started my way down the hallway, knocking first on my parents' bedroom door, and then on Petunia's. "Wake up, it's Christmas!" I cried loudly enough for the three of them to hear it, even if they were in separate rooms. My parents came out first; both of them were slow with exhaustion, but smiling, nonetheless. Petunia then stumbled out of her own room, her pink nightgown wrinkled and contorted strangely, along with a frown on her face.

"How old are you, _five_? Do you have _any_ idea what time it is, you git?" She hissed, her eyes turning into sharp slits. I giggled and nodded before running to the staircase and sitting on the railing. I slid down the side of it and jumped off once reaching the bottom, a skill I had perfected since early childhood.

"Come on, let's open presents!" Petunia groaned as my parents began their own decent down the staircase, my sister begrudgingly following them. Where was her sense of childlike wonder?

We all gathered around the glittering Christmas tree, and upon seeing all the presents decoratively arranged on the floor, I jumped up in joy. I grabbed the first present I saw, a box wrapped in green and red snowball wrapping paper, and, without waiting for my parents or Petunias' consent, ripped it open.

The process for me took about five minutes, while everyone else in my family liked to open their own presents slowly and take time to admire them. After I was done, I had a few new sundresses (my favorite!) for the summer, new books, quills, jewelry, and other fine gifts that had made me pleased upon opening them.

I patiently waited for my parents to open their own gifts, along with Petunia and hers, before I hopped up and collected all the new gifts I had received.

"I'm going to put these in my room and then come back down for breakfast, okay?" My mum nodded and stood up to give me a kiss, and not soon after, my father followed the action.

"Merry Christmas, darling." My mum chanted joyfully. My father nodded in agreement. I smiled at them both, bid them each a similar response, and hastily walked up the stairs to put my new possessions in my room.

There was a reason I was going so fast, if you hadn't guessed it by now.

I was eager to open James' gift.

After arranging my belongings around in my room, my eyes darted to the pea coat that I had worn a few days ago on my way home from Hogwarts. Even though I was so anxious, so eager, so _longing_ to opening it, I was also afraid. And trust me when I say I have no idea why.

My hands itched to run over to the coat and tear open the gift like I had downstairs earlier this morning, yet I stood glued at my spot, my eyes resting on the small, raised bump from inside my pocket.

I took a slow, small step towards the coat. Okay, one down, a few more to go. I took another step, and another, and then another, until I stood directly in front of the chair where my coat rested.

I took a few calming breaths and, slowly, stuck my hand into the pocket and retrieved the small gift. It was in wine red, shiny wrapping paper, and a black, small bow rested on the top of it, where a label was attached. I took the tiny tag in my fingers and turned it over.

_To Princess Lily._

A smile gradually made its way onto my face as I read the three little words written out in black ink. From then on, my nerves went away, and I felt comforted as I ran my fingers over the chicken-scratch writing.

I leisurely tore off the wrapping of the gift and dropped it on the floor. A small, navy blue, velvet box now rested in my hands. Unsurely, I opened it, and gasped at what was inside.

A golden, heart shaped locket sat nicely in the box. Small lilies were carved into the outside, and an awe-inspiring, cursive _L _sat in the middle of the flowery designs. I delicately picked it out of the box and opened it up.

A soft melody began to play as I unfasten the locket, and it took me a second to realize that the song playing was the one we had slow danced to a few previous nights ago. I assumed a bit of charm work had been done to magically enchant it into playing the song upon opening, and the thought that so much effort had been put into the gift made me smile.

Who knew James Potter was _sensitive? _

I smiled and listened to the tune until it ended. It echoed throughout my ears, even after I had closed it shut, but I did not mind – listening to the song had resurfaced memories I knew I would always remember and brought back the bubbling feelings that I had had that night. As soon as I began to feel those emotions of passion and adoration and – dare I say – _love, _I began to feel…sad.

I missed him.

* * *

"Prongs, stop being such a puss. Put that down, come outside, and watch the New Years fireworks with us – they're starting in about twenty minutes." Sirius exclaimed for what felt like the hundredth time. Still, though, James leaned against the backboard of his bed, flipping the pages of a children's picture book, and smiling contently.

"Alright, alright, give me two more minutes." Sirius groaned, smacked a palm to his forehead, and walked out of the room, muttering about how James was becoming more feminine and girlish by the minute. However, the black-haired boy did not care, for he himself felt like he was beaming brighter than any of the fireworks about to go off ever could.

James had opened Lily's present to him on Christmas morning, just like he had promised he would. Once he had torn off the wrapping paper, he had at once noticed that it was a book – more specifically, a fantasy storybook for young muggle children titled _Tales of the Brave._

He had flipped open to the first page, where Lily's near perfect writing had etched out a message:

_Dear Sir James the Brilliant-_

_This book is for you. Maybe you can learn a few things from it, such as the proper etiquette for young, valiant knights who enjoy hunting dragons and saving princesses, such as yourself._

_Happy Christmas, James._

_-Lily_

The gift, no matter how small, how unimportant it would seem to everyone else, was the best gift he had ever received. Sure, it might have been because it was from the girl he had been asking out everyday since first year, but it was more than that – it was personal, insightful, and unique in a way that he had never received a present quite like it before. He adored it.

Reluctantly, he closed the book and hopped off his bed, making his way out of the room he shared with Sirius and downstairs, until he swung open the back door to his house that led to the patio and the rest of his family.

"How nice of you to join us." Mr. Potter droned sarcastically. James rolled his eyes and smirked at his dad, who smirked back at him, telling him without words that he was joking.

James walked over to Sirius and nudged him with his elbow. The other boy turned around and grinned, throwing an arm over his best mate's shoulder.

"You know, this is one of the few times I regret being disinherited." James arched an eyebrow at him, and Sirius chuckled to himself. "Reg and I would always try to set cousin Bellatrix's dresses on fire with the fireworks. It was good fun." James laughed and shook his head at his friend's past behavior.

"You better watch out, she might just get you back one of these days." Suddenly, Sirius' face fell, and a solemn expression rested on it.

"I don't doubt that. You know," He started, "She wants to be one of You-Know-Who's followers once she graduates. A lot of people are thinking about it. They can't see how evil he really is."

James stayed silent for a few moments, both him and Sirius quietly looking up at the sky. "As much as we hate it, Padfoot, You-Know-Who's out there, and he's getting more powerful. Once we graduate Hogwarts, I know what I'm going to do – I'm going to join Dumbledore's society, the Order of the Phoenix. That's the only way this war is going to end, mate. Dumbledore's got it right, he's not as crazy as we think he is – he's a great, smart man. I trust him. And if we ever want this battle to end, we have to stick with him."

Sirius nodded, his eyes gazing unflinchingly at the sky, even as the fireworks began to go off. "You're right, Prongs." He said. "We're not always going to be in the safety of Hogwarts. But if we ever want the whole _world _to be safe again, if we ever want our children to be safe, or our children's children to be safe…we have to fight."

"Amen to that." James murmured, the fireworks reflecting in his eyes.

* * *

I looked to my left, where my parents fondly embraced each other and watched the fireworks above us. I sighed, turning my head to the right instead. Petunia and Vernon sat there, her bony arms wrapped around his piggish belly while his own limbs clutched her face, kissing her with a sort of disgusting passion. However, this time, I did not shudder, nor did not look away. Instead, I watched them with such deep envy I didn't even know I possessed.

How did Petunia get it so right? How did my parents get it so right? Both couples at the moment seemed as close to perfection as couples could be. It was almost depressing, standing here without someone to call my own.

I finally tore my gaze away from my sister, and instead leaned back on the picnic blanket and watched the sky, which was lighting up phenomenally in so many colors and designs that I couldn't even see the stars anymore.

With the sounds of fond whispers and soft laughs, along with those of lips meshing together every few moments, it was hard to observe the fireworks. Unlike my usual peeve of public displays of affection, I did not find myself feeling disgusted. Instead, I was feeling…_jealous. _

All four of them looked so content, like they had finally gotten what life was worth living for– which, I'm sure, they had. How come I didn't have that? Why did their love lives seem so wonderful, while mine was, for lack of a better word, a complete and utter _mess?_

Ha, what love life? Mine is nonexistent – I'm just kidding myself by even hoping I would be able to get it as right as the couples around me had. Who did I have? Rob? No, I dated him for two years, and then he broke up with me for no reason. Jonathan? No, that was a miserably awful relationship, if you could even call it that.

James?

I don't even know if there is an _us _to talk about.

I absentmindedly grabbed the locket resting on my chest and sighed. Why was I worrying about boys, for heaven's sake, when a war was going on?

Yes, I had been thinking a lot about the wizarding war going on between Good and Evil. Voldemort (I was not afraid to say the name, unlike some other wizards) hated muggles and mud-bloods, such as myself. He was killing muggle families everywhere, along with mud-bloods and squibs. I was scared, not only for myself, but for _this, _right here – my mum, dad, Petunia, and even Vernon. I was scared that I was going to lose the only thing I'd ever known.

Even my parents knew that things were changing, though I don't believe they knew the extent of it. I told them to be careful and watch out for any suspicious people caring wands, but they would just wave it off and yes me to death. They didn't understand just how serious Voldemort and his followers were.

"Lily? Lily, are you alright darling?" My mother called out to me, snapping me out of the trance I was in. I looked up at her, startled, and saw her loving face that looked so much like my own contorted with concern. I nodded.

"Yes, just enjoying the fireworks." She gave me a look that said she knew that something else was going on, but didn't press on the subject. Instead she turned back to my father and intertwined her fingers with him. A pang of jealousy flickered inside my chest before it was replaced with a happy one. My parents really did love each other – I hoped that one day, maybe that'd be me sitting with my future husband, watching the fireworks with my children surrounding me.

I opened the locket, and a soft melody floated out of it and into my ears, comforting me instantly. It was quiet enough so that no one else heard it, but loud enough to overpower the loud explosions overhead. It was perfect, just like the song, the present, and the night.

My past feelings of envy and sadness vanished, and I found myself smiling as I enjoyed the light show above.

_**A/N Sorry for all the skipping around in this chapter, haha. But thank God for two snow days, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to finish this chapter. School is very overwhelming right now, shortening my writing time. I hope this chapter will make up for the tad long wait.**_

_**So according to my statistics to this story, I have about 60-70 people who have put this on alert, and only 15 of them review regularly. Please, if you are following this story, leave a review. They really make my day, I promise you that they are greatly appreciated and I will always try to respond to them with gratitude, though sometimes I forget.**_

_**In case any of you don't remember, the song they danced to is 'fall for you' by secondhand serenade. That was the song I was imagining, but it can be any song you think suitable for the occasion, I don't have just one picked out.**_

_**I thought you guys deserved a little bit of fluff, I hope it wasn't overloading haha. Special thanks to anyone who has reviewed in the past and future reviewers. I love you guys(:**_

_**For anyone who's wondering if they're watching the same fireworks, it's potential. I'll leave it up to you to decide whether or not they are ;)**_

_**Song inspiration: fall for you for the locket, of course**_

_**Loud, blaring music at Rinaldi Estate in the basement: give a little more by maroon 5.**_

_**thank you, r&r please! Xoxo.**_


	8. Chapter 8

"Lily, we'll miss you, honey!" I kissed my father on the cheek and gave my mother a long, warm hug. She sighed into my hair and leisurely released me, smiling sadly.

"It's always nice when you come home. We'll see you at Easter, okay?" I nodded and grinned before grabbing the handles of my luggage bags and wheeling away from my parents and onto the Hogwarts Express.

Christmas break was extremely satisfying, but I was glad to be going back to Hogwarts again. As much as I loved my parents, I loved this place, too – I wasn't a freak here, like Petunia and her friends called me so many times. Here, I was…normal. And that fact was great, let me tell you.

I rolled my luggage to the Heads' compartment, my heart beating faster with each step I took. Why was I so…anxious? It was just _James _(insert blush here), for goodness' sake.

I slid open the door slowly, peering inside – no James Potter here, just Remus and Macy, who were also fellow prefects. Macy was wearing a very pretty, pink, flowery shirt – it matched the color of her cheeks as Remus' placed a hand on her thigh.

I was obviously interrupting something intimate…if I could just quietly shut the door and back out…

As I slowly took a step back and turned around so my back faced them, I bumped into something tall and warm, and, forgetting my previous plan, let out a squeal. Macy and Remus instantly turned towards me (his hand had quickly lifted off her thigh as soon as he saw me), but I didn't get to see what happened next, for I was flying forwards.

As I began to fall, I slammed my eyes shut and braced myself to hit the hard, train floor. However, what I hit was not the floor, but something…soft. And warm. What?

I slowly opened my eyes and looked up leisurely, afraid of what I was going to see. By this point, I had figured out that I had crashed and landed on a person. But, knowing my luck, that person would be…

"Oof, Evans…" James' eyes were closed shut tightly, the glasses on his face slightly askew, as I lay on top of him. Oh, Merlin…why…

"P-Potter!" He now opened his eyes, and upon seeing me, smirked.

"Nice way to reconnect after vacation, I guess… I know I'm charming, Evans, but really – I never thought you'd actually _throw _yourself at me…"

I laughed and shook my head. "Missed you, too."

He opened his mouth to speak, but the sound of someone clicking their tongue stopped us. I looked up, as did James, and saw Sirius and Violet leaning over us, both of them wearing smirks on their faces.

"Well, well, well…what do we have here?" Sirius drawled, rocking on his heels as he raised an eyebrow at Violet.

She crossed her arms over her chest and spoke out in an amused, mock-confusion voice. "Why, I don't know! It looks as if these two young students were trying to get it on in the middle of the hallway! What do you reckon we should do, Black?"

"I'm not quite sure, Tatum. Maybe we should let them be so they can finish up?" I groaned and hid my face in my hands.

"I don't know if you've noticed…" Remus started, stepping out of the compartment and into the hallway.

"But all four of you only address each other with your surnames." Macy finished, also stepping into the hallways. Other students passed by and looked onto the scene of the six of us with interest.

"And I don't know if you've noticed," Sirius said in his usual charismatic voice, "But you two finish each other's sentences. Bit annoying, actually." The two blondes reddened, and the four of us laughed at the action.

"Well, as much as I enjoy your presence, Lily dear…" James said, propping up his two elbows so his face was equivalent in position to mine, "It's a tad _overweighing, _you could say, right now." I rolled my eyes and scooted off of him. He quickly stood up and offered a hand to me, which I gratefully accepted. Sirius and Violet shared a look before following Macy and Remus into the compartment.

"Oh, and by the way, I missed you too." James whispered into my ear before winking and drifting in after them. I made sure the prominent blush on my face, which I had gained at his engaging words just spoken, was gone before I stepped inside after him.

"I hope you lot know that this is the Heads and Prefects compartment, which means that only Potter, Remus, Macy and I should be in here right now. Where will the others sit?" Violet tucked a leg under herself while popping an almond into her mouth.

"We'll just shoo them off and tell them we're having a snogging session." She said with a wave of her hand.

Sirius smirked from his position across from her and leaned in towards her. "Are you implying that you and I should make truth of that statement?"

She glared at him, "No," and then stuck her tongue out. I rolled my eyes at their playful banter and took a seat next to Sirius and across from Remus, who was sitting next to a peeved Violet.

The train ride from platform 9 ¾ to Hogwarts was, actually, one of the most amusing and enjoyable trips I have ever made. We all poked fun at Macy and Remus, who, by the end of the time, must have blushed at least ten times each, played a few games of Exploding Snap, and another few rounds of truth or dare, one of which consisted of Violet going up to a random third year in the hallway and seducing him. All in all, it was very…memorable.

Once the train stopped, we quickly said goodbye to the boys, grabbed our luggage, and began on our search for Alice. Where we found her was not surprising – Violet had gone to a small closet on board to get her coat, and as soon as she opened the door, Alice and Frank had toppled out of it. We were now about to go to bed, and still, we continued to tease Alice about how _active _her and Frank were.

"Oh, shut up, you prats…" Alice groaned as she buried her head under her pillow. "Can't we just go to sleep? After all, we start classes again tomorrow, and first period is Potions. Don't forget we finally get our test scores back from that exam we took before vacation…"

Violet climbed into her own bed and tucked herself under the covers. "That? That was a piece of cake, no worries." After Violet's comment, the soft sounds of Macy's snoring reached our ears, and we all made a silent agreement to go to bed. My sleep was blank and black – it was one of those wonderful slumbers where you could just sleep without dreams.

When I had woken up, I had showered quickly, put on my uniform, did my make up, and had eaten breakfast while catching up with my three best friends. I didn't realize just how much I had missed our mealtime conversations until I didn't have them.

We had then made our way to Potions class, and I now sat next to Alice as we waited patiently for the professor to finish rambling so we could receive our test scores back. With five minutes left to the period, he finally decided to hand them back. I, upon, receiving the parchment, had smiled to myself – perfect score, of course. I had expected nothing less.

"Mr. Potter…not your best work." Professor Slughorn handed James his test, and I inconspicuously propped my head up a bit more to see his score. And, might I tell you, it was _definitely _not one his best works. "Please see me after class." James nodded unenthusiastically.

After he finished handing back all the tests, he walked back up to the front of the classroom and assigned us our homework, which was to write six inches of parchment on the Wolfsbane Potion, which is what he had spent the majority of the class lecturing on. The period then ended, and Alice, Violet, Macy and I collected our belongings and began to walk out of the class. I watched James' back as he casually made his way up to the front of the classroom. My eyes wandered from his back to his lower back, and then a little bit lower than that…Oh, quidditch had certainly done wonders to his behind…

"Gah!" As I had been watching James, Thomas Lee had accidently knocked into me and crashed my books to the ground. He quickly looked up at me, but I was too startled to say anything, more so from hoping that I had not been caught in the act of checking James Potter out. "Sorry, Lily. Here, let me help you with that…"

"No, I've got it, go on." He gave me a weary expression. "Really. It's alright." A smile slowly spread across his face. He muttered a "If you're sure. Sorry again." And walked off behind his girlfriend, Katina Johnson.

I bent down to pick up my stuff as the rest of the students left the classroom. Now, it was only me, James, and Professor Slughorn.

"I've been really busy lately, sir. It's just this chapter that I'm having trouble on, I swear I'm not this bad normally, you know that." I heard Professor Slughorn sigh and tap his fingers on his desk.

"I'm afraid I can't host remedial potions classes this term, considering the fact I must start preparing all fifth years for the upcoming OWLS. I could find you a tutor…"

Oh, crap. I had to get out of here, before Professor Slughorn saw me. If my luck checked out (and it hadn't been lately…) I would be able to safely get out of the classroom before he got any ideas…

"Oh, hello, Miss Evans!" I groaned. Really? I inwardly cursed the man before turning around and plastering a fake smile on my face.

"H-Hello, professor. Sorry sir, but I really must get going –"

"You wouldn't mind tutoring Mr. Potter here, would you? You are one of my top students." My eyes shifted from the Slughorn to James, who was looking more and more amused by the second.

"I-I don't know, sir, I mean I'm taking a lot of extra courses…" I stuttered out, nervously tugging on the bottom of my white blouse.

"What if I throw in extra credit?" He asked, arching his eyebrow at the offer. "Come now, Lily, surely you wouldn't pass up an opportunity like that?"

I wasn't sure if I should be happy at the fact I could be receiving extra credit for spending time with James, or upset about it. He would be rather annoying the whole time, I could be sure of that…Plus, he would use the time to hit on me instead of tutoring sessions, and I really needed all the free time I could get to start preparing for the upcoming NEWTS…

I mentally debated consequences in my head before sighing. "Alright, sir…"

"Fantastic! I assume you'll get started tonight?" James strode over to me and threw an arm around my shoulders. I glared up at him from underneath a lock of auburn hair that had strayed into my face.

"Of course we will! Isn't that right, Lily? Or, should I start calling you teacher now?" He then added in an excited whisper quiet enough for only me to hear, "Will you reprimand me if I don't? I'm personally very fond of rulers, though I've had the occasional whip before…"

I shrugged his arm off of my shoulders and nodded curtly to the professor before turning around and swiftly making my way out of the classroom. James followed after me, threw his book bag over one shoulder, and then folded his arms behind his head as he began to walk in step with my own.

"You will meet me tonight, in the Heads' dorms, at no later than eight o'clock. I am going to tutor you, and _only _tutor you. We will have no distractions, no side conversations, and no disturbances from any of your Marauder friends, is that clear?" He nodded and leaned his face closer to mine, grinning cheekily.

"Crystal, teacher." I shook my head and groaned. This was going to bite me in the ass, I just knew it…

* * *

"She's tutoring you?" James nodded and stepped into a pair of jeans before zipping them up and throwing a maroon shirt over his head.

"Yes, Wormtail. How many times do I have to repeat this to you?" James shook his head disapprovingly before picking up a bottle of cologne and spraying some on his hands. He then put the bottle down and patted his neck with his coated hands, afterwards wiping them on his jeans. He smiled contently at Sirius.

"Well? Do I look like a sex demon or what?"

"I'm not at obligation to answer that." Sirius muttered while cringing and sitting on the edge of his bed. James rolled his eyes and checked his watch.

"Well, it's ten before eight; I better start on my way. Wish me luck, eh?" Remus smiled and said "Luck!" While Peter and Sirius just sat there. James raised an eyebrow at them.

"What?"

"Well don't you feel a bit…I don't know, emasculated?" Peter asked slowly.

"I thought about that, actually." James said, crossing his arms over his chest.

"And?"

"And, think about it – I get to spend two hours alone with Lily. In the Heads' dorms. With a bedroom upstairs. And her…_teaching _me. It's a win-win situation." James said, speaking in a confident and evocative voice. "Maybe I'll get more out of these sessions than just the proper way to handle serums, yeah?"

Sirius stood up and clamped a hand on James' back. "That's it, mate! I told you he wasn't stupid enough to overlook that, Wormy. Well, go get her Prongs, and make me proud." James winked at him and strut out of the door.

* * *

"_My affections and wishes are unchanged, but one word from you will silence me on this subject forever." Elizabeth, feeling all the more then common awkwardness and anxiety of his situation now forced herself to speak; and immediately, though not very fluently, gave him to understand that her sentiments had undergone so material a change, since the period to which he alluded, as to make her receive with gratitude – _

"Watcha reading?" I flinched as the world of Darcy and Elizabeth melted away around me, and found myself not in the era of Victorian England anymore, but in the Heads' dorms at Hogwarts. I sighed and shut my book – Jane Austen was always a favorite author of mine, and I always became so captivated when reading her literature…

"Don't tell me you've never heard of _Pride and Prejudice_?" I asked him, arching an eyebrow. He shook his head and overdramatically fell back onto the couch, sitting down next to me.

"Nope. I assume you are shocked because it is such a famous book in the muggle world?" I nodded. "You seem to forget that we're not in the muggle world sometimes…" He drawled, an amused smile playing on his lips. "What's it about?"

I couldn't tell if he was joking or not when inquiring about my book, but I chose to take him up on the question anyway. "It's basically about a young woman named Elizabeth Bennett, whom harbors a prejudice towards people of high class and assumes them to be awful people. One such person is Mr. Darcy, and not only does she automatically judge him for his wealth, but he's arrogant and proud and irritable to her."

James watched me for a moment and leaned in, smirking teasingly. "And then she oversees his arrogance, falls in love with him, and they get married, right?"

I narrowed my eyes at him in question. "You said you've never read, or even heard, of this book. Liar…" I said, crossing my arms over my chest, book still in hand.

"Not a liar, just a good guesser. It wasn't that hard, you know, because…" He started, kicking his legs up on the coffee table. I silently glared at him. "All I had to do was follow the pattern that we're going to take. Simple, really."

I scoffed and shook my head at him. "Please. You forget that this is real life, and this book is fictional."

"Evans, life is fictional." James murmured, eyeing me from the corner of his eyes. "But it's our job to make real of it."

Whoa.

I starred at him, my mouth agape, before I slowly shut it and found my voice again.

"That was…strangely enough, very profound. I'm impressed. I didn't know that you had an insightful side." Instinctively, I clutched the locket around my neck. He eyed the action and allowed a smile to appear on his lips.

"Yeah, well, there's a lot you don't know about me." He muttered, his hazel eyes locking with mine. I smirked.

"Guess we'll just have to change that then." He finished, winking in my direction.

I rolled my eyes and sat up straighter, placing my novel on the table and instead, picking up my advanced potion making book. "Oh, shut up, and let's just start this tutoring session already. I have a lot to teach you." I saw James' face color for a moment before he coughed. I mentally questioned it, but just merely brushed it off after a few moments and opened to the correct page.

"We'll start off by beginning your Potions' essay. Mine's already done, of course, so we'll have more time to focus on yours." James sighed and grabbed his book bag, which he had placed on the floor, and pulled a spare bit of parchment out of it and a quill.

"Well by all means, Evans, we may start." I rolled my eyes and smiled, all the while scooting closer to him so I could peer at his parchment as he wrote. However, and I don't even know if he noticed it, for the act was so minuscule and insignificant; but our knees brushed against each other's, and I swear, I instantly became at least ten degrees hotter, and my heart seemed to jump and flutter to the point where I wouldn't be surprised if he heard it's loud beating.

We talked and bantered, argued and flirted, bickered and smiled, along with our studying. Before long, it was half hour past curfew, and James and I decided that we would not risk going back to the Gryffindor tower and would spend the night here.

"I'm going to go upstairs and change into my pajamas. If we're going to be studying for some time longer, might as well get comfortable." I picked myself up from the couch and dusted myself off, James following suit.

"I fancy the same idea, actually. Meet you back down here in ten, then." I nodded and went up one staircase, James going up the other. I put my hair up into a high ponytail after ridding myself of my uniform and getting into long, green, silk pajama bottoms and a white tank top. I quickly looked at my appearance in the mirror, made sure that I looked good but without looking like I was trying too hard, and made my way back down the staircase.

James was no where in sight, so I assumed he was still changing. I made my way back over to the couch we were previously occupying and sat down on it, watching the fire that always was burning (magical enchantments, obviously) and, slowly, my eyelids began to droop. I stifled a yawn and stretched my arms above my head. Dang, when did I become so tired? Why, just a minute ago I was perfectly awake…

"Getting bored without me, then?" I looked to the staircase and saw James, clad in dark maroon, flannel, pajama bottoms and a plain white tee-shirt. Stunning, of course…

"Apparently so…" I said, stifling another yawn. He walked over to the couch and sat down next to me.

"Actually, you look _really _tired…" His voice sounded…worried. And concerned. Why, though…?

"I just haven't been getting as much sleep, I guess…" I blinked tiredly and sighed.

"Is there a reason?" His hazel orbs locked with mine. I felt myself beginning to relax, and dare I say, open up a little bit…I gave into my urge to tell him the reasons behind it, and began to speak.

"I'm just worried, with the war going on that is. My parents are…well, muggles. I'm scared for them." I sighed again and softly rubbed my eyes with my knuckles, stifling another yawn. I began to lower my hands, but James grabbed them and pulled me towards him. Next thing I knew, I was laying down next to him on the couch, my arms pressed up against his sides as I my head resting on his chest.

"Wha-?"

He shushed me, and I instantly quieted. Whether it was because I was eager to hear his voice in an explanation, or I had lost my own in clear fluster, I knew not.

"I'm not going to try anything, I promise. I just want to talk, nothing more, unless, of course, you want to…" I laughed as his voice grew suggestive during the latter of his sentence and repositioned myself, turning around so that I still lay down, but this time, faced him.

"We can talk. No promises that I'll be up for long, though – you're very comfortable, Ja-" I cut off my sentence as I realized what I was saying, and James laughed as I groaned in embarrassment.

"So I've been told." He murmured, winking at me. For some reason, the thought of him being told this before by other women upset me. I, however, brushed off the feeling and laid my head back down on his torso, listening to the beat of his heart and the steady rhythm of his breaths.

"So Lily…what are your big plans for this upcoming weekend?" Even though he couldn't see the action, I raised an eyebrow in curiosity.

"What big plans?"

"Don't tell me you don't have any plans? Or are you being sarcastic?" He asked.

"What 'big' plans would I have this weekend?" I replied, my voice rising in wonder.

"You…you honestly don't know? Or are you testing me to see if I know?" When I stayed silent in question, he said, in an amused voice, "This Saturday is the Hogsmeade trip."

"Okay…? We have those every month…" I drawled out, my voice faltering a bit.

"But how often do Hogsmeade trips fall on your birthday?" What? I racked my brain. Impossible, my birthday was on the thirtieth, and today was Monday, the twenty-fifth…Oh.

"I totally forgot about that…" He chuckled lowly, and I relished in delight of the extremely satisfying way it rumbled within his chest.

"You would forget your own birthday. You were always selfless like that…" He stated, much like he would if he were stating the weather. The causality of it amused me, but I chose not to comment on it.

"Yeah, well…I have a lot on my mind, like I said before." James and I lied there silent for a few minutes, me listening to his beating heart as his hand began to run up and down my back slowly and affectionately. All my worldly struggles seemed to melt away. I wish we could stay like this forever…it felt so natural…so right…

My eyelids began to droop, and not long after, I found myself falling into slumber, my lungs subconsciously inhaling his beautiful scent, and my hands unknowingly clinging to the fabric of his shirt. I briefly heard the sound of a soft, low voice singing the same melody that my locket was trained to play before I completely slipped away.

* * *

"I knew James would get lucky last night. That's my boy!"

"How do you reckon they got like that?"

"Oh, who cares, Macy? We're never going to let them forget this, though – that's for sure."

"Why Violet darling, that's incredibly evil of you."

"I'm aware of such Sirius darling. And Peter, stop pouting, we all know that you'd love to be in Lily's place right now, seeing as you have quite the crush on James, but you're just going to have to accept that he's in love with another."

Laughter.

"H-Hey! That's not true…"

The laughter continued.

"Moony?"

"Sorry, Wormtail, I'm going to have to side with them on this one..."

"Frank, stop grinning like a mad man. I know you're proud of James, but let's try not to make it so obvious…"

"Sorry, Ally…"

"Aw, you two have pet names for each other? How adorable!"

More laughter.

I stirred as the sound of amused voices and laughter hit my ears. Cautiously, I opened my eyes, only to see Sirius, Macy, Remus, Peter, Violet, Frank, and Alice peering down at me. I squeaked in surprise.

"Hey, she's awake!" Sirius exclaimed before leaning closer to me. "So, how was it? Did he live up to your expectations?"

"Wha-…" Wait. This wasn't my room…I pushed myself up from my bed, but found that my hands did not meet the cushion of a mattress, but a cotton fabric covering something incredible soft and warm, by far better than a mattress.

I slowly turned my gaze towards my 'bed', and when my eyes met the peacefully handsome form of a sleeping James Potter, I remembered the events of last night, and found myself smiling.

"That grins tells me that's a definite yes." Violet murmured amusedly while popping a hip and placing a hand on it. I saw Sirius' eyes shift for one split second to her waistline before meeting mine again.

"Believe it or not, Lily, we actually came here to wake you two up for classes. We assumed you two would be sleeping in your own bedrooms, but I guess we were wrong…" Alice drawled out, a smirk slowly spreading across her face. Oh no, they really _weren't _ever going to let us forget this…

To make matters worse, James stirred under me, and he opened his eyes and yawned. "Morning, Lily. Have a nice sleep?" When he heard snorts and scoffs, he looked to his side and met the same people I had previously woken up to.

"Have a nice sleep?" Sirius said in a mock James voice. Said boy glared at his best mate. "That's like a way of saying, _thank you so much for last night, it was truly amazing-" _Sirius preached, everyone besides James and I laughing. In the next second, James had scrambled out from under me and tackled Sirius to the ground, and the other boy struggled for a moment until James had him pinned to the floor.

"_If you'd like to live out the remainder of your life, you will shut up _right_ now_." James hissed out, his voice cold and harsh. Every single person in the room flinched – Everyone knew he was not one to be messed with. However, I'm sure Sirius was used to it, for he merely winked humorously and stuck his tongue out at his friend in a childish manor.

"Alright, alright, break it up." Remus started, walking over to the two of them and pulling James off of Sirius with surprising strength. James obliged and stood up, crossing his arms over himself defensively while Sirius just laughed and picked himself up from off the ground.

"Well, classes start in about twenty minutes, so you lovebirds better get dressed and we'll see you out in the great hall." Frank said, intertwining his fingers with Alice.

The two of them then began to walk out of the room, followed by the rest of the people intruding in on the Heads' dorms. Sirius was the last to go, but, of course, before he left, he yelled from over his shoulder, "Hope she's as good as you've always imagined she'd be!"

James began after him, his hands turning into fists, before I grabbed his wrist in prevention.

"You know how Sirius is, don't let him get to you." James sighed and shook his head, ruffling the back of hair with a free hand. The motion was too cute, honestly.

"Yeah, I know…" He sighed one more time and began to walk over to the staircase leading to his room. "Please forgive me for my friends' behavior."

"Only if you forgive me for my own friends, too." He chuckled and nodded before continuing on his way upstairs. I let my eyes watch his retreating form before smiling to myself and continuing up my own staircase.

_**A/N oh hello there. I hope you liked the fluff in this chapter, because that's all there's going to be for a while. Don't get used to it. But oh, what could I be talking about? Stay tuned to find out ;)**_

_**So I lied unintentionally last chapter when I said 60-70 people were following this story. It turns out that 84 of you are following this story, yet I only receive, even now, about 20 reviews for each chapter. I appreciate every single one of them, don't get me wrong, but I do enjoy feedback, and I really wish I could get it from all of my readers, whether it be good reviews, or bad reviews.**_

_**I'll side with the fact that James seemed like a bit of a jerk when he said to Sirius that the only reason he agreed to studying was because of the fact there was a room upstairs. But as we know from the previous chapter, there's more to him than meets the eye, and he has more emotional depth than we had believed him to have.**_

_**The songs I listened to while writing this chapter was 'Maybe' by Secondhand Serenade and 'Sparks Fly' by Taylor Swift. I love both of them, but Taylor Swift really connects to me with her lyrics. Any other Taylor Swift fans out there? Tell me your favorite song off her new album! I like 'Speak Now', 'Never Grow Up' and 'Long Live'. What're your favorites?**_

_**Thank you to all of you who have reviewed, alerted, and favorited. You guys are the ones who keep me going, you don't know how much I love you all and look forward to your continuous support!**_

_**Thank you again!**_

_**Yours truly, **_

_**Roxalicous. Xoxo.**_


	9. Chapter 9

I yawned and stretched my arms over my head, lazily rubbing the sleep from my eyes. I turned to my nightstand and looked at the time – six o'clock in the morning on Saturday. Perfect.

I rolled out of my bed and put on a pair of slippers, grabbing my book _Pride and Prejudice _and slowly creeping out of the bedroom so that the sleeping forms of Alice, Macy, and Violet did not wake.

I made my way down the stairs of my dorm and into the common room, which was empty, minus a few Gryffindors. Brilliant.

I walked over to fireplace and sat in the red loveseat in front of it, comforting myself as I opened my book to the marked page.

Today was January 30th, or, my birthday. I had finally become of age. At the thought, I smiled – Petunia had better watch out when I came home for Easter Vacation…

I sat there, in the same position, for well over an hour or two. I knew that as soon as my friends got up, there would be an unending stream of let's-party-like-there's-no-tomorrow attitudes and doings, and as much as I loved my friends and partying, I also needed just a little bit of time to unwind from the hectic school week.

Every night, from seven to nine, James would meet me in the Heads' dorms, and we would study for potions. He seemed to be getting a tad better at it, but I don't believe he knew the subject well enough to pass it on our NEWTs, which meant until he did, I would have to tutor him every single night.

In those sessions my feelings for James, dare I say…grew. I had started to notice different things about him, like how he wrinkled his nose when he didn't get something. Or how, when he was bored, he'd bob his leg up and down. Or, how his eyes didn't seem to have just one color – there were so many different ones, when we'd briefly look into each other's every now and then, I'd try to count them.

I also took notice of how he hadn't asked me out the entire week. And, how he had been getting closer in friendship to Jillian. The thought made me weary. In fact, I was so weary, I even asked him about it once – he had just given me a look and laughed. How rude. So, when he asked me about Jonathan, I did the same. He then sulked for the rest of our tutoring session. That just shows who is the more _mature_ one out of the two of us.

Jonathan and I were, actually, on very good terms, considering the awkwardness of the dance. After vacation, we had begun to talk more, and now I considered him, actually, to be very close to me. He gave great advice, which was one thing. And also, there was no sexual barrier needed, because as it turns out, over vacation, he had become even _closer _to Marissa. They were now going out. That allowed our friendship to blossom even further.

I heard three pairs of footsteps running down the stairs, and I instantly recognized them to be Alice's, Macy's, and Violet's. I pretended not to hear them as I continued to read my book in a blissful peace that was soon to be interrupted…

"Lily!"

"Lillian!"

"Lil!"

They all shouted my name differently right after the other. I sighed as I shut my book, but couldn't help and smile as I turned to face them.

"Yes?"

"Happy birthday!" They all yelled in sync. They then proceeded to jump onto me in, what I assumed were, hugs.

"T-Thank You-u." I coughed out breathlessly, my lungs being crushed. Macy quickly hopped off of me, Alice and Violet after her.

"Sorry, Lily…" Macy said, sheepishly rubbing the back of her head. Alice did the same, but Violet just grinned maniacally.

"Are you not _totally_ excited for today? Macy and I have planned out the entire day for you!" Alice glared at her, crossing her arms across her chest and huffing. Violet watched her and raised an eyebrow.

"I love you Al, but you just snogged Frank the whole time…" I burst out into laughter with Macy as Alice's face reddened in color. We sat there, laughing and talking for a few moments, before five more pairs of footsteps came running down the stairs.

"Ahem." The four of us turned towards the boys' staircase, and Frank stood there, grinning from ear to ear as he cleared his throat.

"I would like to present to Miss Lily Evans and co, the Marauders' Birthday Special." Violet and I shared a look with Macy and Alice before we heard someone from behind the staircase clear their throat.

"_Happy birthday to you…"_ Peter sang, stepping out from behind the wall in his pajamas. I couldn't help but smile.

"_Happy birthday to you…"_ Another voice sang, although this one was slightly lower and more hesitant. Remus stepped out from behind the wall too, and his face beamed as it met the gaze of mine.

"_You smell like a mon-key,"_ Rang a charismatic voice, and Sirius stepped out as well, clad in his own navy blue pajamas, an amiable smirk on his lips.

"_And you look like one too."_ James finally made himself known as he was the last to step out from behind the wall, and he smiled at me before winking and adding in a slightly smaller voice, "Well, not really, but it rhymed, so…"

I laughed and began to clap my hands, along with my other female friends, and a few fifth years that were also in the common room. The four Marauders bowed at the same time, as if they had rehearsed this – which, I wouldn't be surprised if they had.

"Charming." Alice exclaimed, shaking her head as Frank went to go and stand next to her. I got up and stood in front of the four of them, who were grinning down at me with stupid smiles on their faces.

"That was _lovely_, thank you." I said sarcastically, though a smile still sat evidently on my lips.

"Oh, no problem, Lily darling." Sirius picked up my hand and delicately kissed it slyly, like he had done so many times before. I rolled my eyes and went to hug him, a hug which he gladly returned. I then hugged Peter, and then Remus, and lastly, James.

"Oh, just a hug? I don't get a birthday kiss or anything?" I swatted his shoulder with my hand, and he just shrugged and smirked.

"How comical. If only we had gotten that on tape." Violet sighed mordantly before saying, "Oh well. Happy birthday, Lily. This is from all of us." She pulled out a small, long present from the inside of her silk, night robe.

"You guys, I told you not to get me anything…" I murmured, trailing off as she handed the present to me.

"Oh, just open it, you git." I giggled and tore off the wrapping paper, revealing it to be a green, velvet box. I leisurely opened it and gaped at its containment, which was a long, golden quill that had exquisite embroider carved into it, and a long, red, feather protruding from the end of it.

"Real gold. Oh, and that's a phoenix's feather." Macy explained, pointing to it. I found myself complaining at the beauty and sure expense of it.

"This must have cost you guys a fortune!"

"We all chipped in." Alice said while waving it off with one of her hands. "It's your birthday, Lily – we wanted to."

"I don't know what to say…thank you, so much. It's brilliant." I said at last, looking up at my friends with a smile on my face. Damn, were they great?

"Don't forget our present!" Remus exclaimed, reaching into his pajama pocket and pulling out his wand. _"Accio Lily's present!" _He said, pointing his wand at the staircase leading to the boys' dorms. A present came shooting down the stairs and into Remus' outstretched hands, wrapped in silver paper with a small blue bow on the top.

"You guys got something too?" I asked in shock. I didn't know people cared this much about me.

"Yes, and again, it's from all of us." Remus handed me the present, and I glanced at the five boys, all of them smiling at me.

"Well, go on." Sirius muttered anxiously. I shook my head at him and began to open the present. Inside the wrapping was a box, and once I opened it, I squealed gleefully – the box set of all of Jane Austen's works, including _Sense and Sensibility, Emma, Mansfield Park, _and more.

"James said that you were really into this Austen chick," Frank began to explain, watching my expression of delight, "So we decided to get you her works, though we didn't know whether you had them all yet or not…"

"Aw, you guys care about me!" The five of them, minus Sirius (for he was too 'cool' to do such), reddened.

"Can I initiate a group hug…" I said quietly, watching the eight of them with an amused expression. The first at my side was James (surprising, right?), who was followed by the rest of the group, shortly.

"Well, as fun as this has been, we have a big day for ickle little Lily over here. We must bid you all a due. See you at Hogsmeade, then." Macy said, sharing a look with Violet. My other friend smiled sardonically and laughed, although I could've sworn it was an evil one.

"Yes, yes, _quite _a day."

Oh, dear...

I groaned as the hug ended, and then I was being pulled up the stairs.

This should be interesting.

* * *

"Stop fidgeting Lily, you look fine." I glared at Violet and looked back at my appearance in the mirror of Madam Puddifoot's bathroom. I stood in dark, tight, skinny jeans, and on my torso rested a body tight, plum colored shirt that hugged my shoulders, leaving them bare. My hair was curled into soft ringlets, and I had on a light tan eye shadow, mascara, and pink gloss. I felt so…I don't know. _Dolled up. _

"Don't you think…I don't know…I look like I'm trying too hard?" I asked, spinning around in front of the mirror to see my appearance from all sides. Violet rolled her eyes and started dragging me out of the bathroom and back over to our table, where Macy and Alice were laughing and sipping their tea happily.

"No, I've already told you that. You may _think_ that you look like you're trying too hard, but to everyone else, you just look _hot." _She drawled out, putting particular emphasis on the word 'hot'. I sighed.

"If you say so…"

"Alright guys. So we just paid the bill, and I fancy going over to The Three Broomsticks now, yeah?" Alice said, getting up from her chair and pushing it in. Macy did the same.

"Sure, I could go for a glass or two of butterbeer." I smiled and grabbed my coat from the back of the chair I had previously occupied. My companions smiled too, although there smiles seemed a bit…conspicuous, if that made sense. Like they were trying to hide something. I knew they were plotting; I was just unaware of _what_ at the moment.

We ventured outside, and the cold, chilled air felt good after being in the crowed, steamy tea shop. Soft snowflakes fell from the sky, which was almost completely dark at this point. But, with being sixth years and up came with the privilege of staying at Hogsmeade until nine – which, I'm sure, is what we had planned to do, considering it was already almost eight.

We shuffled to the cavern, laughing and talking cheerily on the way. So far, this birthday had been great – My friends really were the best. I loved them with my whole heart.

Alice swung open the door to the three broomsticks and walked inside, us trailing after her. We stomped the snow off our feet and hung our coats and scarves up on one of the hangers on the several posts in the place, and as I was about to sit down, Macy pulled up a chair and stood on it.

I watched her with wide eyes and turned to go ask Violet or Alice what she was doing, but they just smirked at me knowingly.

What the hell?

"Can I have your attention, everyone?" To hear Macy speak so prominently was a bit outstanding, truthfully. She was usually so quiet, shy, and kept to herself. I'm sure others felt that way too, for within the next three seconds, all the students in the cavern had quieted.

"As some of you know," She began, and I watched her miserably. This couldn't turn out good. "It's Lily's seventeenth birthday today, which means she's finally become of age." A few people whooped. "Yes, yes. Anyway, as many of you _also_ know, I'm from Scotland. And in Scotland, we have this tradition where when a girl gets married, she goes to a local pub with a small basin, and men in the pub put money in it and get to kiss her. I know Lily's not getting married, but I figured it would be fun anyway, as a good coming-of-age sort of thing."

Many boys in the cavern wooted and wolf-whistled, and I felt my face color as I pleaded that this was just some cruel joke. "So, what do you all say? Think we should go on with the idea?" A good amount of the population in the cavern cheered, and Macy motioned to Madame Rosmerta. The woman turned on a radio, playing some upbeat tunes, before she came out from behind the counter with a small basin and gave it to Macy, who hopped off the chair and handed it to me, smirking wildly.

"I hate you all." I grumbled, angrily ripping the basin out of Macy's hands. Violet smiled and leaned in towards me.

"No, you love us, and I'll tell you why." She started, only to be interrupted by a sarcastic laugh from me.

"This should be good."

She ignored the comment and went on. "You get to kiss every boy in the cavern. _Every single one. _You need to find a boyfriend Lily, and this is the perfect opportunity to find one you have sparks and chemistry with." I still glared at her. She rolled her eyes and pushed me forward a bit. "Oh, you'll thank me later. Go on."

I was pushed into a rather tall and handsome sixth year, and he dropped in a galleon and leaned in to peck me. I instinctively kissed back, though it was against everything I believed in, such as only kissing those whom you had intimate relations with. He backed away slowly, and then a second later, another boy was dropping in a few knuts and leaning in, this one slightly awkward and with glasses, and then another, with tussled bronze hair, and then another, and then another – it was hard to keep track.

A half hour later, and I was still pecking boys in the cavern, though by this time, I was already more than halfway through. And, I had to say, I had begun to enjoy myself. Some of these boys were quite the kissers – some of them weren't, sure, but if you didn't count those, it was like teenage girl heaven.

"From the Marauders to you." I heard Sirius say from behind me. I turned around to stare at the four of them cheekily smiling down at me like earlier today. Sirius dropped in three galleons. "I reckon that will be enough to pay for all of us, yeah?" I laughed and nodded, grinning slightly.

Sirius smirked. "Good. Well, go for it, Lily darling." I rolled my eyes and leaned closer to him until my lips connected with his own in a soft kiss.

After a few seconds, we parted, and then Sirius winked at me. "Next time," He started, leaning forward so his mouth was just next to my ear, "I hope I'll be able to get more than that for _free." _

I swatted his shoulder, rolling my eyes playfully. "Oh, bugger off, you prat." He laughed and walked past me, calling to someone over the loud music playing. Peter then coughed rather loudly, and I smiled down at him.

"Yes?"

"My turn!" As repulsing as it was to kiss Peter, I bent down anyway and planted a chaste kiss on his cheek. He groaned in protest, but after I shot him a look telling him that he was crazy if he thought he was going to get some lip action, he huffed and scrambled after Sirius.

Two down, two to go. "Remus, I believe you're next." The boy flushed and grinned, ruffling his sandy-blonde hair.

"Y-You don't have to if you don't want to, you know. I understand if you'd just rather skip me, I won't be offended or anyt-" I cut off the boy by grabbing the front of his shirt and pulling him towards me to press my lips into his own. His eyes widened in surprise before they slowly shut, and he began kissing me back.

After a few moments, I drew back and smirked at him. "Remus, you over-think things way too much." He sighed, looking at his feet as he tried to hide the small blush on his face.

"Yeah, I know…" His eyes suddenly darted up towards someone to our left, and he ran after them, shouting out a "Wait!" I followed him with my eyes until I saw Macy, her face red and blotchy from anger, rushing out the door.

Oh, shit.

* * *

"Macy! Macy, wait!"

The two of them continued to run through the night, the snow falling silently around the girl and the boy chasing after her. It was almost comical that something could be so peaceful and wonderful while havoc raged in the young boy's heart. He had just kissed Lily for her birthday, it was nothing more, and didn't Macy understand that? After all, wasn't she the one who had even _made_ the arrangements for her friend to be kissed?

The girl's running slowed, and Remus, who had caught up to her at that point, watched from a few feet away. "Macy?" And still, the girl stayed silent, her wavy hair billowing around her while her pale blue eyes watched as snow piled up on a deserted-looking building.

"I always though the shrieking shack was beautiful." She finally stated after a moment of silence. Remus took a few cautious steps towards her, being careful as to not cause her to run again.

"It has a sort of…mystery to it, yeah? I've always wanted to go inside…" She sighed, her breath forming a small cloud as she released it. Remus ruffled the back of his sandy-blonde hair.

"Um…Macy?"

"Hmm?" she hummed, her eyes never meeting his. He took it as a sign to continue.

"A-About what just happened in there…" He said, trailing off while eying her wearily.

She laughed bitterly. "Don't worry about it."

"No, I _am_ going to worry about." Remus interjected, his face becoming solemn. He cleared his throat and spoke again, but this time, in a much more confident, stern voice.

"Macy Jaimelynn Rebecca Cassandra Hussey."

The girls face reddened as he used her entire name, and finally, her pale oceanic eyes locked with his warm, chocolate ones. He approached her and shook his head disapprovingly. "You are _so_ stubborn sometimes."

And then, he grabbed the flaps of her open coat and pulled her closer: slowly, gently. Her eyes widened, and he couldn't help but admire the way they stood out against her fair skin, rosy cheeks, and cherry red lips. Those lips…

"What are you-"

"Stop talking, Macy." The girl quieted and inhaled sharply as his lips began to approach hers hesitantly. Macy's heart beat quickened, and she began to tremble as she felt his breath on her face.

And then Remus, summoning all the courage he possessed, kissed her. And then, she was kissing back, and he was smiling into it, and so was she, and their bodies pressed closer to each other, and they embraced in the snow, white swirls falling blissfully around them as the world melted away.

* * *

I began to walk after Macy and Remus until a firm hand gripped my upper arm.

"Evans, I paid money too, you know, and I reckon I still haven't gotten a turn." I had completely forgotten that James was a part of the Marauders for the time being.

I whipped my head around and glared at him. "I just kissed Remus, I need to apologize to Macy. Let me go."

However, James did not let go. Instead, he disapprovingly shook his head. "Shouldn't you be apologizing to _me_ for kissing Remus?"

I stopped struggling, and lifted my gaze to meet his own. "What?"

"Lily, Lily…" He said, tutting contemptuously. The action, strangely enough, caused my insides to churn excitedly. Quite excitedly, actually. "Do you know how awful it is watching you kiss all these guys, especially when I want you all to myself?" The way he was talking to me, addressing me as if I were a child, made me feel…somewhat…_thrilled_ inside.

Merlin, what was my body doing to me?

"…" I found myself at a loss for words. James watched me for a moment before he reached into his pocket and pulled a galleon out of it. He dropped it into the basin, and hesitantly leaned in.

My eyes began to flutter shut as his lips barely brushed over my own. My bottom lip trembled at the touch, and I could feel the uncertainty of his actions as his own lips quivered cautiously. He pressed his lips harder onto mine, pecking them, before he backed up. My eyes opened slowly, and I stared into his hazel ones for a few moments.

In the next second, that one second of my lips being deprived of his, I had flung myself at him and crashed my lips against his again, dropping my basin in the process. It seemed he was thinking of doing the same thing, for when I reached him, his eyes were also closed and his lips were already stuck out. He pushed me against a nearby beam and clutched my waist, his fingers lightly brushing against a bit of exposed skin on my stomach. We kissed feverishly, anxiously – months of pining, aching, yearning, and wanting seemed to pour out into that kiss as we nipped at each other, kissing hotly and hastily, both of us fully aware that the moment would have to come to an end in just a few moments.

This is it. We're finally going to be together. This is the famous kissing scene from all the movies and books; the scene where the protagonist finally gets the boy she wants.

He backed away, his breathing shallow. No, no, that kiss ended much too soon. He must've thought the same thing, for he pecked my lips again, and then again, and then a third time, which was much longer than the other two times. He pressed his lips onto mine continuously, and I blindly kissed back, my eyes still shut – without the sense of sight, my other senses seemed to strengthen. For instance, my sense of hearing – I could hear his husky pants over the loud music blaring in the back ground. My sense of smell – I tried to inhale as much of the idyllic aroma of quidditch and cologne that I loved so much. My sense of taste – my tongue filled with the wonderful sensations I had come to know as the essence of James Potter. And lastly, my sense of touch – each kiss seemed to stand out from the other, becoming more and more breathtaking with every time his lips pressed against my own. It was…an astonishing feeling. I never wanted it to end. It was pure bliss.

Leisurely, I opened my eyes as he continued to peck my lips. His own eyes were closed, the glow from the dimly lit lights reflecting off of his glasses. He felt my eyes on his face, I'm sure, because he slowly opened his eyes, too, as our lips still connected more and more.

We stared. I don't know for how long, but we simply stared as we kissed, our eyes locked onto the other person's. He pecked my lips once more, pecked the corner of my mouth, and then drew back finally. I felt frozen in my spot.

"I…" He started, his eyes never unlocking with mine, although they widened slightly. Green starred into hazel. Time flew by wildly. I wasn't aware of how much or how little was passing.

We stayed there, planted in that exact spot, our arms wrapped around each other. Seconds passed. Minutes. Maybe even hours, I was unaware of it though – my brain was moving too fast to keep track of it anymore.

"I'm sorry." What? Where did that come from? I searched his eyes for some sort of indication at what he meant by the words. Next thing I knew, he was striding away from me, swinging open the door to the Three Broomsticks, and walking out into the night.

But…Wasn't he was supposed to proclaim his unending love for me, whisk me off my feet, and beg me to be his lover? I don't ever remember a case where the prince charming of the story walked away…

Wasn't he supposed to say how he's always loved me, and that he regrets waiting so long to finally tell me that he knew from the very first day he saw me, that we were meant to be together? Wasn't he supposed to carry me bridle-style out of this place and to a horse drawn carriage, where we'd travel to a faraway kingdom and live happily ever after?

Wasn't he supposed to be mine from now on?

…Wasn't he?

_**A/N Yay, Macy and Remus got together! Happy ending. But the same can't be said for James and Lily…**_

_**When they were kissing, I got the inspiration from the kissing scene in 'Made of Honor'. Great movie there, check it out, yeah?**_

_**Lily's birthday was inspired by the song, 'seventeen forever' by metro station. If you can't tell by the lyrics, it's about…well, being seventeen haha.(: I also listened to the song 'innocent' by taylor swift when writing the kiss/leave scene with James and Lily. **_

_**Someone asked if I was writing the story in present time, because the songs I've mentioned didn't exist back then. No, it's in regular time. The songs that I mention are my personal inspiration for the story and the kind of music I would have imagine playing. The songs can be whatever you like. Those were just the ones I had in mind.**_

_**Ah, I totally wish I had the marauders as friends ;/ I wish they'd sing happy birthday to meeee…**_

_**This story + Reviews = a very happy Roxalicous. Please, you will make my day, I promise…**_

_**Thank you for the read, favorite, and review! I love you(: All of them are so greatly appreciated, I can't thank any of you enough for your sincerity and the time you take out of your schedule to give me feedback. **_

_**Thank you again! **_

_**Yours truly,**_

_**Roxalicous. xoxo**_


	10. Chapter 10

My breath hitched in my throat as James strolled into class, looking striking and miserable at the same time. There was something different about him – instead of the usual childish quality he possessed, he looked…conflicted. And I bet I could guess why.

"Did you hear about James, Candice?" Said a blonde girl as she took a seat next to her dark-skinned friend at the lab table in front of me. My heart started to hammer painfully in my chest as my mouth went dry. I quickly coughed and bit my bottom lip while gripping the sides of the table and focusing on the chalkboard in the front of the classroom. I had heard the same talk from many passing students in the hallways, classes, and corridors of Hogwarts, but the effect it had on me stayed the same, even after what felt like the hundredth time I had heard it.

"No, what?"

No, please, please, please don't say it, not again, I don't know if I will be able to stand hearing it again -

"He's dating that girl, Jillian. You know, the one he went to the ball with."

And there it was, the devastatingly heart-wrenching information that I despised so much to hear.

"Really? What about that kiss I saw him give Lily in the three broomsticks?" Having heard that, I subconsciously wet my lips in bitter remembrance of the event. Great, she just had to bring that up…

"It was just a birthday kiss, that's all. So, I heard that Remus _finally_ asked out Macy, and – "

I toned out the rest of their conversation while I tried to regain a regular breathing pattern, which, at the time, seemed impossible.

James and I had kissed. It was brilliant, and breath-taking, and amazing, and just the sheer memory of it sent chills running up and down my back. Then, he had run out, and I had just assumed it was for some stupid reason, such as he had to ask his mates their opinion before asking me out. So, I went back to Hogwarts, all happy-like, and then…

I woke up in the morning like any normal day, except that day, I had felt outstandingly bright. I had had a good feeling about it. Oh, and how wrong I was…

I had showered, dressed, and prettied myself, literally _skipping _down the stairs in search of James, who, I was sure, would be looking for me too. And then, when I got to the common room, I felt a pain similar to that of a knife being pierced through your chest, a bludger being thrown at your stomach, and a hippogriff kicking you in the face.

James and Jillian were snogging.

Snogging.

_Snogging. _

In the _middle_ of the common room.

They were _snogging_.

The _nerve _of that boy…

After I had gotten over my initial shock and physical ache caused by the scene, I had ran back up the stairs and locked myself in my room for the rest of the day. The pain I had been in was too much to handle, too unbearable…

I had experienced heartbreak before, yes. Rob was a perfect example, with him dating me and then dumping me out of the blue after two years. But this was something like I had never experienced before. I was sad, jealous, heartbroken, and angry, but I felt more than that – I felt _betrayed. _I felt completely deceived, absolutely let down, and wholly depressed. I had never experienced such horrid, upsetting emotions all at once before.

Then, I had begun to hear about it. And I mean, _everywhere. _It was almost as if every corner I turned, every corridor I went down, _someone _seemed to be talking about it. And I became sadder and sadder with it all.

Violet, Macy, and Alice were worried about me. Heck, Frank, Sirius, Remus, and Peter were worried about me, too. I'd walk in on the girls conversing without me, and there'd be an awkward moment where the conversation would halt, and all their eyes would land on me. Violet would then say some witty remark, like, "So what they did was so stupid, right?" And Macy and Alice would go along with it. Like I didn't know what they were talking about, did they think I was stupid?

A few times when I'd walk out of the Great Hall or down the dorm stairs, I'd catch Sirius, Remus, and occasionally, Peter watching me with curious and weary eyes. Once they saw that I was looking at them, they'd turn around and begin to whisper, or scamper away. Other than that, no one was aware of the complete disastrous state that I was in on the inside. And that was the way I liked it.

I didn't see much of James. I didn't see him in the hallways, or in the prefects' room, or even in most of my classes. He'd always sit farthest away from me as possible, or with – I gave a slight cringe – _Jillian. _Speaking of which…

The chesty, blonde girl often glared at me in the hallways (I tended to see her more than James nowadays, which was weird, considering we we're taking almost completely different classes except for Charms and Defense Against the Dark Arts, while James and I shared every class together), give me cold looks from across the Great Hall, or purposely bump me with her shoulder and knock my books out of my hands while switching classes. I took it all in stride, though; no way was I going to respond to such immature and obnoxious behavior. So far, I had given her six detentions and five warnings. And trust me, _that_ was me being generous. She was one of those girls you hear about in movies and book – popular, blonde, gorgeous, crafty, sneaky, maniacal, well liked, chesty, seductive, but a downright and total _bitch. _Why James was dating her, I did not know.

Speak of the devil…He sat down, this time, in the front of the Potions room as I sat in the far back corner with Violet. I starred at him, hoping to make some sort of psychological connection or a physiological plead. Anything. I just needed to talk to him, but the only time I could do so these days was in class, since he was so scarce during the rest of the school day.

He turned to his left to mutter something to Sirius before his eyes quickly darted to mine. They locked.

He swiftly spun back around, facing the front of the classroom. I felt myself deflate a little.

For however upset I was, James was, by the looks of it, even more so. His uniform began to look wrinklier with each day, his hair messier, and his attitude less bright. Also, dark, half moon marks began to form under his eyes as the days wore on – he must have not been sleeping at night.

He looked so troubled, so tormented and torn inside. Why? Because he was with Jillian? He could have easily chosen me over her. What was the problem, then? What was _his _problem? And guys say girls are confusing…

Two weeks had gone by. Two awful weeks of silent suffering and watching James from afar. Two weeks. It felt like two years. I prayed that something would happen. It didn't even have to be good. I just needed _something. _Something to hold onto, something that would tell me that kiss was real, even if James didn't want it to be.

Class ended, and I watched as James sprang out of his seat and grabbed his books in one swift motion before striding out of the door. I didn't even bother to race after him this time. I slowly picked up my books, throwing them in my book bag, which I then slung over my shoulder. I headed out of the classroom, Violet close behind me.

"Lily…" Violet started, "Can we talk for a minute?"

I turned towards her and forced a smile before shrugging. "Why not?"

"Okay, come with me." Her hand gripped my wrist, and she began to tug me down the hall and to the girls' lavatory. I groaned inwardly when she shoved me, a bit roughly actually, into the bathroom, shutting the door closed behind us.

"Lily, you know what I'm going to say." I watched her, a somewhat vacant look in my eyes, before shaking my head slowly. She sighed. "I'm worried about you."

"Why would you be worried about me? There's absolutely nothing to worry about." I said coolly, crossing my arms over my chest defensively.

"Lily, I'm done with you pretending like there's nothing wrong, because there is – and I'm not letting you out of here until you talk to me." She pulled her wand out of her pocket and gave a light wave. A lock sounded from the door handle, and I glared at her.

"That was unnecessary."

"Lily."

I sighed and leaned against a nearby sink. "What do you want to talk about?"

"You've just been really down lately, and I know it's because of that idiot James' fault…" I felt my stomach dropped as she voiced his name, but I just shrugged.

"Maybe a little bit."

"Have you talked to him yet?"

I scoffed. "Are you kidding me? The only times I see him are in classes. He's postponed every tutoring session we've had so far, and he just keeps coming up with different reasons not to come." My hands clamped shut into fists, and I angrily pushed my hair out of my face before saying, "I'm so sick of him and his antics, honestly. I doubt I'm ever going to get the opportunity to talk to him."

"Did he cancel the tutoring session for tonight?" Violet asked, leaning on the sink next to mine.

I shook my head. "No. Or, not yet, at least."

She smiled. "If you've forgotten, the quidditch game against Hufflepuff that was cancelled last Saturday is rescheduled for tonight."

I raised an eyebrow at her. "Okay, isn't that bad news? That's another reason for him to ditch me again tonight…"

"No, the game should only go for about an hour, so if it starts at six, it'll be over by seven, and you're tutoring starts at eight. I reckon he'll be too tired to think of an excuse this time." She said the last sentence in a sort of sing-song voice.

"Fantastic, Violet." I said sarcastically, though I couldn't help but be a little happier than before. She had a point – however, I wouldn't know for sure if she was right until another hour when the quidditch game started, which, at this point, seemed like asking to wait another year. _Great_.

She unlocked the door, and we walked out together and into the great hall to take our seats for dinner. As we walked to our usual seats at the end of hall, we passed Sirius and James, both of them hunched over the table and whispering to each other. Suspicious…

I chose to disregard whatever they were doing, assuming it was something stupid, like talking about how far Jillian and him have gotten. I also ignored the screaming pain in my chest telling me to march right up to him and cry my heart out. Stupid female hormones.

We reached the end of the table, and Violet slipped onto one of the benches, I doing the same on the opposite side. The first thing I noticed as I sat down was that I did not come in contact with the wooden, hard bench – instead, I came in contact with something plush. The next thing I noticed was that as I sat on it, air flew out of an opening made on the…_thing, _whatever it was. And the last thing I noticed was that as the air was flying out, a wavering, unappealing sound came out with it.

I hopped out of my seat as everyone's eyes flew to me and the Great Hall became silent. I took out my wand and brandished it, muttering the words _"Revelio!"_. Low and behold, a small, circular pillow-type item appeared on the spot, and I picked it up.

"Whoopie cushion…Makes farting noises." Violet said aloud, reading the front of the object. Much to my relief, the silence of the Great Hall paid off, for everyone heard her talking and turned away in realization, saving me from embarrassment. However, above all the chatter, I heard a pair of snickers coming from somewhere along the middle of the Gryffindor table…

I whipped my head around, my cheeks flushed from embarrassment, and saw Sirius and James looking my way and smirking. Next to James was Jillian, and she was also smirking, though hers looked a little…forced, so to say.

James and I connected eyes, much like so nearly a half hour ago in Potions class. This time was different, though; while the first time was awkward and a bit depressing, this one was playful from his end, and cold from mine. I harshly turned away and sat back down, crossing my arms over my chest. Violet glared at the duo before following suit across from me.

"See, Vi? He doesn't even care about me!"

Violet rolled her eyes and leaned forward on her palms. "Or, this is his way of communicating with you. He just started to prank war again. Maybe he wants to interact with you, but this is the only way he knows how to, after the whole…" she made a gesture with her hands so as to avoid saying the wrong thing about what happened that night in the Three Broomsticks, "…ordeal."

"I don't think so." I huffed and leaned back, crossing my arms over my chest. Violet shrugged and cut herself a piece of the steak they were serving for dinner.

* * *

"See that one? That one's called _Sirius. _I bet Sirius wouldn't be able to tell you that." Remus said with a small grin as he raised his hand upwards. Macy followed the point of his finger to a star that glowed brightly against the dark, night sky. Macy sighed happily and raised her own hand so that it met his, and Remus immediately intertwined his fingers with her own. Their locked hands fell to the ground, hitting the soft fabric of the blanket they were laying down on in the astronomy tower.

"You are _such _a nerd." She murmured, turning her head so that she was facing him. Remus rolled his eyes playful while his thumb traced her own and turned his head also.

"And you aren't?"

Macy smiled shyly. "But I make being a nerd cute, don't I?"

"Definitely." The simplicity of his words caused her face to redden a small amount before he nudged his head closer to place his lips on her nose.

She giggled at the action. "That tickles."

"But I thought you were ticklish on your stomach?" He asked while poking at her side. She squirmed as a laugh erupted from her mouth.

"T-There too! Don't do that!"

"Don't do what? This?" He jabbed her again, and she writhed to the side as more laughs came out from her mouth.

"Y-Yes!"

Remus smirked and attacked her stomach with his hands, causing her to shriek with laughter as she tried to wriggle away. A few minutes later found them both lying back pleasantly on the blanket, Macy's head resting on Remus' chest peacefully. She sighed contentedly as nearby whistles and cheers sounded off from the quidditch pitch in the distance.

"I love nighttime quidditch games." She whispered in a low voice.

"Me too…" Remus looked back up into the sky to see the moon – one night away from being full.

"Macy?"

"Hmm?"

"I know we've been together for two weeks-" He began.

"Two amazing weeks…" she interjected, twisting her head backwards to see his face. His smile faltered, and Macy's eyes widened. "What's wrong?"

"It feels like a lot longer than two weeks, doesn't it?" Remus' voice trailed off a bit as his eyes met Macy's pale ones.

"Hey, what's up?" She asked, the corner's of her mouth tugging downward in a frown.

His eyes shifted back to the moon, and Macy's eyes followed it too. "Ahh, so that's what you're worried about…"

Remus remained silent as Macy repositioned herself back on him. "Are you scared I'm going to leave you, or break it off with you because of it?"

Remus sighed. "I know you say you won't, but you don't know the terrors that this relationship could lead to…"

"We've talked about this before, Rem." Macy's eyes focused on the dark night sky above her.

"I know!" He said, his voice rising slightly in frustration. "But, you don't seem to get it…I don't want to force you to stay with me if you don't want to. And I don't mean necessarily because you don't like me anymore, but for social reasons…"

Macy groaned. "Remus, I'm not going to leave you. Plus, Lily, James, Peter, Sirius and I are the only ones that know you're a were-"

He made a shushing sound with his lips, quieting her instantly. "Don't say it." He gave her a sad smile. "Please."

"Whatever you want. But I want you to know, I'm not going anywhere." Remus gave her a small smile, and she took the opportunity to quickly turn around and peck his lips before turning back and watching the sky again.

* * *

"Come on, I'll drop you off at the locker room." Alice smiled appreciatively and tugged at the bottom of her quidditch jersey.

"Today's gonna be a rough match. I reckon Hufflepuff's got themselves a good team this year. Plus, they've got Feely as a keeper, he's really good in the goal, and they have Reynolds as a beater – " I put a hand up to stop her from saying anything more.

"Don't worry, Alice. You've got this game, no competition." She flashed me a small, somewhat nervous smile.

"Thanks."

"Oi! Prewett!" The two of us turned around to see Sirius walking over, his dark, wavy hair flying with the wind behind him. "James is still in the locker room, but he wants everyone on the field right away, said something about the weather acting up later tonight…" Alice nodded anxiously and hoisted her broom over her shoulder.

"Sorry to leave you, Lily. Where's Violet?"

"She's saving us spots on the top row." I gave her a smirk. "We're going to be cheering _extra _loud for you today, love."

She shook her head, "Don't embarrass me in front of the entire school, please."

"No promises there!" I sang. She then began to walk away with Sirius and towards the field, and I began to make my way over to the stands. However, my eyes began to wander over to the boys' locker room. James was in there, wasn't he?

I turned towards to the quidditch pitch and counted the players – one was missing. So, he really _was _in the locker room…

My legs seemed to work of their own accord, for suddenly, I was striding towards the tent, my breath coming out in short, unsteady puffs and my hands shaking slightly.

I looked around for any professors or teachers walking by, and when I knew the coast was clear, I slowly slipped inside. I took in the warmth of the room and the masculine odor-ish smell coming from the insides of it before I spotted James pulling his maroon and gold jersey over the black thermal he was wearing. My breath caught in my throat.

What was I doing? What was I expecting to happen, or to do, or to say? I hadn't thought any of it through. All I knew was that James was here, and that I needed to see him. Stupid me, I'm going to look like an idiot…

"Evans?" He said, spotting me from the corner of the mirror he was standing in front of. He quickly spun around, and the expression on his face told me he was just as surprised as I was to be here. The use of my surname caused a cold sting to form all over my body, but I ignored it.

"P-Potter." I stammered out, trying to calm my trembling body. I couldn't tell if it was from being in a warm room after the blistering cold, or the effect that he had on me. Either way, I was rendered hopeless in his presence.

"What are you doing here?" He asked after a moment, and he slowly began to inch his way to the opening. Oh, no. He wasn't get out of here until I said what I needed to say.

"Don't try to get out of this one." He sighed and grabbed his broomstick, swinging it over his shoulder.

"I have a quidditch match, and I really don't want to waste time-"

"No, you just want to run away, and then I'll never get the opportunity to talk to you again, because you avoid me everyday now."

He shot me a look and muttered, almost pathetically, "I don't avoid you…"

"Don't lie, Potter." His eyes darted towards mine, and I quickly tore my own gaze away. "You need to tell me what's been going on lately, and I mean with everything: Jillian, my birthday, the avoiding, the…" I found my face flushing as the memory of it resurfaced in my mind, "…the kiss…" I looked up at him again, and this time, his eyes were not on mine, but we're downcast on the floor. "…us…"

He didn't say anything. I waited. And I mean, I waited patiently. Five minutes passed. Then ten. Then fifteen. And yet, he didn't move, and neither did I.

Finally, I said, once last time, "Just tell me, and I won't ask ever again."

He shut his eyes for a moment, either in annoyance, frustration, or coldness - I couldn't tell.

"You want the reason? Here it is: I – "

"Hey, Prongs, what's taking you so…" Sirius walked into the locker room, but stopped immediately upon the scene of seeing James and I. A moment of awkward tension passed before I coughed.

"So, um, I'll see you at tutoring tonight?"

James nodded, "Uh, yeah."

"Great." I stood there for a moment, my eyes shifting back and forth between James, who was still watching the floor, and Sirius, whose eyes were on me with raised brows and a slight smirk.

"Good luck, you guys." I walked out of the tent, and only then, when I was outside, did I notice that I was holding my breath.

I racked my brain for ways that his statement could have ended before we were rudely interrupted so, and the possibilities just seemed to become endless. By the looks of it, there were more negative outcomes than positive ones at this point. I inwardly groaned and shook my head, trying to erase all thoughts about it – at least, for now.

I made my way up to the top row, and eventually to Violet. The game had already started, with a score of forty to ten, Hufflepuff.

"No, James Potter is off of his game tonight, he's lucky his team's backing him up so well tonight, otherwise – and, another goal for Hufflepuff, making the score fifty to ten. COME ON, GRYFFINDOR!" Professor McGonagall gave Tom Jordan a sharp look for the clear favoritism, but I couldn't help but see the longing hope in her eyes.

"And Alice Prewett makes a nice hit to Hufflepuff keeper Phillip Shea – And a nice goal by Sirius Black on Gryffindor! Fifty to twenty! Come on guys, keep it up!" Tom cheered into the microphone.

I took my seat next to Violet, who barely offered me a greeting, before she cupped her hands around her mouth and yelled, "_Come on Sirius, use those muscles you're always bragging about, you cocky bloke! James, what the hell, get your sorry ass into gear, you complete dick wad! And Weiss, find that snitch, or I'll take your broom and shove it up your-" _I threw a hand in front of her mouth, muffling any further vulgarity coming from it.

An hour later, and Hufflepuff was ahead by a whopping seventy points. There seemed to be no comeback from this point on, as the snitch was almost impossible to see in the darkness, and the Gryffindor's team was so off their game…

But somehow, hope was found – Justin made a sudden dive to the ground, the Hufflepuff seeker on his trail. Suddenly, he pulled back up, and low and behold, a small, round, golden ball was in his hand.

"Ahh, Gryffindor wins!" Tom cheered into the microphone above the noisy cheers coming from the stands. "_Take that, you Hufflepuff motherfu-" _

"Come on, let's get going, before the rush." I nodded and followed Violet down the steps of the stands, large piles of teenagers screaming obnoxiously around us. The quidditch team was patting Justin on the back, and the people who had run onto the field were doing the same – however, the Gryffindor team didn't seem as happy with their playing as everyone else in the stadium (minus the Slytherins and the Hufflepuffs, of course) did.

We rushed into the school and climbed the staircase to our dorm, which was vacant. "I guess Macy's not back from her date with Remus yet…" I shrugged, but Violet offered me a smirk. "Seems likes she's having a mighty good time."

"I'm sure she is, just not in the way that you're anticipating." Violet snorted out a "Please." and jumped onto her bed, pulling out a teen-witch magazine from her bed-side table.

"So that game went a little over our set time then." Violet said while humming and flipping through the pages of her magazine.

I raised an eyebrow. "So?"

"You only have a half hour to make yourself pretty now!" She said in an outraged voice while throwing her magazine melodramatically on the ground. She quickly pulled me over to her vanity and opened a tube of lipstick.

I irritatingly shoved it away. "Not now, Violet, I'm not in the mood. Plus, what's wrong with my make-up?" I asked, folding my arms over me chest.

Violet gave me this look of pure disgust. "You're not wearing any."

"So?"

"Sheesh, ruin my fun." She dropped the lip gloss back on her table and walked over to her closet. "At least wear something cute?" She threw me a pair of light jeans and a tighter, green, long-sleeved shirt.

I shook my head. "No, Vi. I'm wearing this," I gestured to my Yoga pants and form-fitting blue tee-shirt, "With no makeup and nothing done with my hair. I am not prettying myself up for him, he doesn't deserve it."

"Good girl!" Violet shouted, and I couldn't help but smile a little.

A half hour of conversation passed between us, along with a Q and A with Macy as soon as she came back from her date. All too soon, though, it was five before eight, and I had begun to make my way to the Heads' dorms.

I entered the password and walked in, clutching the seventh years' potions book against my chest. Upon entering the scene, my breath hitched in my throat.

James had gotten back from his shower after the game and had lied down on the couch, sporting long, blue, plaid pajama bottoms and a plain white tee shirt. His hair, which was still wet, reflected light as it shaggily hung around his face, making it looks like a…strange enough, beautiful mess. He never did _not_ look good to me.

But the most surprising part was not where he was or what he looked like, but was instead, what he was doing – and that was sleeping.

He looked so peaceful, so at ease, unlike any other time I had seen him recently. The usual uptightness in his face was gone, and his eyelids fluttered as he dreamt. The scene was…perfect. I stood there, watching the rise and fall of his chest, the slight twitch in his hand every few minutes, and the way he wrinkled his nose, for quite some time, before I began to walk over to him. I made sure my steps were quiet and paced out evenly so he did not wake up. I didn't want to ruin this ideal scene.

As I approached him, I knelt down next to the couch and inhaled his natural scent. Hesitantly, I then raised a hand very slowly to his face, brushing out a lock of dark, wet hair that had strayed into his eye. I happily noticed his glasses weren't on – don't get me wrong, I thought he looked very attractive with them on, but there was a difference from when he was wearing them and when he wasn't. He looked…more honest and genuine without them. He gave off an aurora of comfort and sincerity. He wasn't James Potter, the playboy, quidditch guy he was when he wore his glasses. Instead, he was James Potter, the boy who was sensitive, amiable, and who had finally succeeded in winning my heart.

My face began to redden as I watched his pink lips moving up in down in sync with his breathing. Those lips had touched mine barely over two weeks ago. If only I could touch them again…

I folded my hands under my legs and slowly leaned forward. He did not move.

"James, why can't you make up your mind?" I sighed and gazed longingly at his angelic face. "You ask me out for six straight years, and then when the time comes where I'm finally considering responding affirmatively, you stop." His right eyebrow twitched, and I smiled to myself. "And that night, where we danced…things changed. I felt it. And I'm sure you felt it too." A frown quickly grew on my face. "You gave me the most wonderful present the next day. I'm actually wearing it right now…" one of my hands itched to grab it from my chest, open it, and hear the beautiful melody I had grown so accustomed to, but I resisted the urge. "And then, we kissed… and when I think that we're going to finally be together, you say _'I'm sorry' _and run out on me. What was that supposed to mean? Was that a future apology for going and breaking me by asking out Jillian, or for continuing the prank war?"

His breathing continued at the same pace it had been the entire time during my ramble. I laughed bitterly and picked myself up from off the ground. "You've been chasing me for years, James. I guess…you've finally just gotten tired of it and moved on." I bent over to the small coffee table next to the couch and picked up my potions book. This tutoring session could be rescheduled.

"And just when I'm thinking about letting you catch me…" I shook my head and sighed. "Well, I guess that's the beauty of love – it's blind, and once you can finally see through it, it bites you in the ass."

I watched his sleeping form, the steady rise and fall of his chest, and I could've sworn I heard his heartbeat. The same heart that used to beat only for me.

"Get some sleep, James." I leant down and brushed his dark hair out of the way of his forehead so I could softly press my lips onto it. "You really need it."

After that little touch, I could have sworn I saw a small stir. However, I did not stick around long enough to find out. I quickly strode away from him, and only after I was out of the portrait hole did I realize my eyes were beginning to blur from the tears I had worked so hard to keep unshed.

_**A/N there we go. Hope you liked the pointless fluff with Macy and Remus. :D Well, it's not pointless..Now you know that she and Lily know about Remus being a werewolf. But do they know about Sirius, Peter, and James being animagi? Maybe that'll come into play in future chapters? Ahh, but anyway, the fluff is always fun to write. **_

_**Yep, so that's why james walked out – he's dating Jillian. But why, I mean really, what's going on with that? Stay tuned to find out ;) Oh, and he is chaser in the books, but is seeker in the movie. However, JK said that it was possible he could have been chaser for a few years, and then later on seeker, but his deifinate position in his later years is unsure.**_

_**Song inspiration: **_

_**Breathe – taylor swift, and for entire chapter.**_

_**Hey Stephen – taylor swift, and for macy and remus.**_

_**SHOUT-OUT: happy birthday, Jess! I hope it's a good one(:**_

**_Hey, ask me questions! I know some of you already are, but here's my formspring: happypappy_**

**_You can ignore all the things they say about this boy named Chase, really, it's very stupid...But anyway! _**_**Thank you again for all your continued support through this work. I love it so much, you have no idea. I always will appreciate your reviews. So thank you again :D**_

_**Roxalicous. Xoxo.**_


	11. Chapter 11

"I swear, James Potter, I will kill you, even if it's the last thing I do!"

"Bring it on, Evans. It's just too bad you can't take the heat I'm throwing at you."

"_Don't _even start that, you have _no idea _what I'm capable of!"

"Oh, and what's that? Throwing a little tantrum, and then running off to tell McGonagall like you just did?"

"I only told McGonagall because you took it a step too far this time!"

"Students!"

I immediately silenced myself and glared daggers at James before crossing my arms across my chest. Next to me, James rolled his eyes and placed his hands in his pockets, casually leaning back. McGonagall, who looked a little flustered and aggravated, sat down. Then, in a voice that hinted she was straining herself from strangling us, asked, "What exactly happened, you two?"

"Well, professor," I started, my eyes shifting to James momentarily to give him a cold look, "_Potter_, over here-"

"Oi, you started it!" He interjected sharply. I could feel my face hardening in irritation.

"_Potter_, over here," I continued, "Took one of my personal undergarments, hung it from one of the floating candles in the great hall, and used a sticking spell so that I had to wait an _hour _for Flitwick to come and get it down!" I huffed as James began to smirk.

"You know, I never thought you were one for green lace, I reckon even the Slytherins enjoyed it-"

"_Mister Potter."_ His voice trailed off to silence as McGonagall gave him a look that made him shrink back the slightest. "And what do you have to say, in your defense?"

"Evans started it when she took my quidditch robes and replaced them with a smaller pair so that during the game, I had to fly around wearing a _skin-tight _uniform that complimented areas that every male should not have complimented." He stated coolly, although I could have sworn that his cheeks grew slightly pinker than before. I sniggered.

"I thought it highlighted the femininity in your body quite nicely, actually." I innocently blinked at him, the faintest smile on my face. He laughed sarcastically and opened his mouth to speak before McGonagall cleared her throat rather loudly.

"I don't know what to do with you two anymore. This is your third double detention _this month. _In case you've forgotten, you're both Head boy and girl! This is not acceptable behavior for your fellow prefects, peers, and professors!" My eyes cast guiltily towards the floor, and out of the corner of my eye, I saw James shift uncomfortably in his place.

She sighed and briskly pulled out a quill and pad of paper. "Detention, Tuesday, six to nine – you'll be polishing the awards in the trophy room." She ripped two slips from the book and handed one to me, the other to the arrogant, obnoxious boy next to me. "Please, don't make me have to do this again. Just try to get along for the rest of the year."

"Yes, professor." We responded mechanically before turning to walk out of her office. After we were safely outside, I turned towards the dark-haired boy next to me and glowered.

"This is all your fault!" I shouted at him while stomping my foot childishly on the ground. I didn't even need to look to know that he was rolling his eyes. He seemed to be doing that a lot, lately.

"Evans, don't mess with the big boys if you can't match up to them." I resisted the urge to smack him and just huffed and began to walk off. I could feel his eyes boring holes into my back until I turned the corner at the end of the hallway and bumped into Sirius and Violet conversing rather closely to each other.

They stopped immediately, took a side-step to put more distance between themselves, and smirked at me, all in sync. "How's all that sexual tension coming along then, darling?"

I shot Sirius a frown while my eyes narrowed into slits. "He has a girlfriend, Sirius. And quite frankly, all interest I've ever had in him has gone." Okay, well maybe that wasn't _completely _true. The more we fought, the more I hated him – but, at the same time, I found him becoming…_more handsome. _It made no sense. I knew I despised him with every fiber of my being, but when he smirked at me after an accomplished prank, I couldn't help but feel…

Ugh, I think I'm going mental.

"Him and Jillian aren't going to last much longer, I think." Violet stated simply, rocking back and forth on her heels as her shorter, black skirt swayed slightly. I saw Sirius' eyes move downwards to the exposed skin on her thigh, and I couldn't help but snigger inwardly. Oh, he so liked her, even if he didn't want to admit it.

Actually, now that I think about it, he and Violet seemed to be growing much fonder of each other. Sure, they still bickered and disagreed on topics, but most of the time, they actually seemed to…dare I say, enjoy each other's company. Nearly after a week of their newfound friendship, I saw Sirius' eyes wandering, or his face reddening while she whispered to him or touched his arm. It was just so _amusing. _He fawned over her, and Violet was oblivious to it. It was almost pathetic, but in a cute sort-of-way.

Macy and Remus seemed to be growing more intimate, too. They often were seen snogging in the hallways, or holding hands in between classes. While Violet and Sirius were more on the adorable side, Macy and Remus were a lot more serious. With their relationship growing more intense and the year drawing to a close, they were both aware that it would not last forever; it was almost saddening.

"She's right, you know." I began to walk down the hallway and to the outside courtyard of the castle, Violet and Sirius falling in step with me. "They're all sex and no talk."

"Because that makes it so much better…" I mumbled under my breath while pushing through a wooden door. Once it opened, I was immediately struck with a blast of pleasantly warm air and sunlight. Spring seemed to be coming early this year, I noted, as the majority of the snow had melted, and everything outside seemed to be endlessly wet from it. Luckily today, we were blessed with enough sunlight to dry the ground enough to sit on and enjoy the outdoors.

I breathed in the wonderful scent, filling my nose with it. Sirius and Violet walked ahead of me and towards a tree by the lakeside, choosing to sit under it. I walked after them, allowing myself to relish in the feeling of the sun being absorbed into my skin.

"Really Lily. I wouldn't worry about it." I sighed and looked upwards, where the now growing green leaves of the trees mixed with the blue backdrop of the sky. They formed a sort of brilliant hazel color, almost like James' ey-…

I shook my head. "I don't care, honestly. I'm so done with him. Anyone who makes me feel this way isn't worth my time." I stood up, brushed off my pleated uniform skirt, and began to make my way back to the castle ground. I only had so much time to rest until my tutoring session with James. Only two more weeks of this torture until it was finally over…and I couldn't wait.

* * *

"Remus!" The sandy-blonde haired boy turned around and nearly stumbled backwards as Macy ran into him, throwing her arms around his neck and laughing into his chest. He chuckled and regained his balance before putting his arms around her back and asking, "What's the occasion?"

"I got in!" She yelled, "I got pre-accepted into the University of Healers in London! I'm going to be a Healer!"

Remus' face looked shocked for a moment before the widest of grins grew on it. "You…got in? You got in!" He laughed and lifted her off feet, twirling her around stupidly and giddily and happily. She shrieked with laughter, and as soon as he put her down, she stood on her tip-toes to give him a small kiss.

"Of course, I'm not going to go until I graduate Hogwarts, but this is a definite in for next year, and – " Remus grabbed her hand and kissed it. Macy giggled shyly as her face became pinker.

"I'm going to take you to the astronomy tower, tonight, at eight, for dinner. Okay?" She nodded until he grabbed her hand and started pulling her towards the castle grounds.

* * *

Violet and Sirius watched Lily's retreating back before she turned to him and offered a small smile. "So."

"So." Sirius flicked a piece of his dark, wavy hair out of his eyes. Violet's smile seemed to grow bigger.

"How're things with your family?"

Sirius sighed and folded his hands behind his head while leaning back onto the ground. Violet followed suit, but propped up an elbow to face him, her long, dark hair blowing around her face. Sirius' hand itched to tuck it behind her ear, but he resisted the urge and closed his eyes.

"Same as before. Mother shipping me things from the house. Kreacher sending me letters with his spit in them. Regulus trying to help, but making no difference. The usual."

Violet gave him a sympathetic frown and scooted closer to him. "I wouldn't worry. You have other things to distract yourself from it..."

A smirk slowly grew on his face, and he parted one eye to look up at her. "Oh?"

"Yeah..." She brought her hand to his face, placing her finger on his forehead, slowly tracing down his nose, and then to the side of his face where she trailed her fingers down his jawbone and side of his neck until it rested at the collar of his shirt. His eyebrow shot up.

"'Lette…?"

"Shh…"

She brought her lips closer to his until they covered them, and she smiled as she teasingly outlined his bottom lip with her tongue, her hand massaging softly and seductively on his neck. Sirius let out a contented sigh before picking up his own hand, placing it on her forearm and running up and down the area, leaving a trail of warmth that left her skin tingling. After a moment, Sirius' eyes snapped open, and he lightly pushed her back. She groaned, "What?"

"Not here, 'Lette. I don't want anyone to know yet."

"Me either." She breathed, though a perfect smile still managed to grace her lips. "It's fun to take risks sometimes, though."

"I can agree on that. So, I'll pick you up tonight at, let's say, eight? We can head to the room of requirements. My treat." He smirked up at her, and she lightly brushed a stray lock of hair out of his forehead.

"That sounds great." She picked herself up, brushing off her skirt, and began to make her way back to the castle. Sirius tossed over onto his stomach to watch her retreating back, the way her legs moved, the casual sway of her butt…

He felt himself reddening before he turned back around and took a deep breath. How he managed to have a girl like that at his fingertips, he was unaware.

* * *

"Lily, please?"

"No, Alice!"

"Just one paragraph, that's it!"

"Why didn't you write it when you had the chance?"

"Because I've been spending so much time with Frank, and he keeps sneaking me out to Honeydukes and we have a date tonight at eight, and…please?"

"No! I will not let you cheat off of my Transfiguration essay!"

"Bu-"

"No!"

Alice huffed and crossed her arms over her chest while leaning back in her chair in the library. I flipped another page of the book I was reading, my eyes scanning over the page quickly, before flipping it again. Alice sat across from me, tapping her quill on the desk as her eyes roamed around the rest of the library.

"You could always try, I don't know, _reading." _I suggested, my eyebrow twitching in annoyance as she started to make clicking sounds with her tongue.

Her eyes narrowed the slightest as she heard the sarcasm in my voice. "You know I'm not good with books."

"Gee, I wonder why? Maybe it's because you lack a total sense of reality and don't care much for the little things in life, such as an education. You could always try it out…actually; I think it might be a little too late for that. If your brain lacks maturity now, than you might never get any." I snapped back, glaring at her from under my eyelashes. Alice looked taken aback for a moment before she pushed her chair back, making a scratching sound on the wooden floors. She grabbed her black robes off the back of the chair and pushed it back in, not before offering me a cold stare and turning to walk around.

I sighed, pushing my hair out of my face. "Alice, wait."

She continued to walk.

"Dammit…" I roughly closed my book and started to massage my temples. I was so stressed out lately, snapping at everyone and picking stupid fights with anyone that presented the opportunity. I really needed to take a relief break from it all…

After deciding a bath in the prefects' bathroom was a good idea before my tutoring session with James, I began to pack up my things, before I heard a hesitant voice say, "H-Hey, Lily."

I immediately froze. Oh no. I knew that voice.

I turned around slowly, my eyes widening as they took in the tall, skinny, blonde form of Jillian Thornton.

"…" I opened my mouth to speak, but then found my voice gone. She quickly nodded, a nervous smile on her face, before taking the seat across from me that Alice previously occupied. She smelled of jasmine and spice – something, I'm sure, made most boys go completely nuts over her. I watched her cautiously.

"I, erm," she started, clicking her perfectly filed nails on the table. The library seemed to be out of her comfort zone. I had to suppress a snort as she hesitantly drank in the surroundings before finally turning to me. "I wanted to say that I'm sorry."

…What?

Again, I tried to open my mouth to talk, but this time, found my jaw clenched shut. She gulped and sighed, her dark eyes gazing downwards. "I know that I've been acting like a stuck up prick, but that's just because I was…well, jealous."

I finally found my voice, but only for a short amount of time to ask in between my extreme shock and astonishment, "Why?"

"Lily, James has fancied you since he first laid eyes on you in first year. Anyone in their right mind would be when dating him. And…I don't know. He's really attracted to you, like most of the guys at this school."

My mouth opened and closed, much like that of a fish's, before I finally gained enough sense to ask, "W-Why do you, uh-…say that? I don't agree, at all actually, but I'm rather curious…"

Her eyes darted towards mine before she quickly turned away. She looked a little strained before saying, "Well, first thing is, your gorgeous, without even trying. And also, you have this…quality about you. It's like…your confidence and intelligence and sweetness just sort of, radiates off of you. And…I don't know. I can tell James still likes you. It can be infuriating sometimes, actually." She looked back up at me, throwing a piece of her pin straight hair behind her shoulder. I stared blankly back at her.

"I…Thank you, Jillian." She nodded, smiled, and seemed to breathe in relief a little.

"No, Lily. Don't thank me. I still took him away from you. I know you like him; I see the way you look at him." Before I could start to defend myself, she raised a hand, a bittersweet smile on her face. "If I have to lose James to anyone, I'm glad it is to you."

She pushed her chair back and got up, still smiling at me. "So...friends?"

"I, um…friends."

She flashed me one last smile before turning around and walking over to…Rob? Whoa, I never knew that they were friends…but what just happened…?

I really needed to get to that prefects' bathroom.

* * *

"Sirius?" Violet poked her head into the room of requirements, only to see an empty room with a tiled floor and small record player off to the side.

"Siiirrriiiuuussss?" She tried again, this time entering and shutting the door behind her. As soon as the door closed, a soft, saucy song came on, and a few candles lit up. Sirius, who had been hiding behind the door, grabbed Violet's hand and spun her around. She wordlessly followed until he had her in a dip to the song playing – a tango.

"Hello, Violet darling. You look ravishing tonight." He said, eying her tighter black dress and heels. She winked and stood up, saying "And you sound corny tonight, Sirius dear."

"Corny and horny, that's how I work." He grabbed her hand and lightly spun her around, his hand resting on her waist, until pulling her into a close embrace, her foot popped in the air with the last beat of the song.

Once the song finished, a much slower one came on, and they began to revolve on the spot, still embracing.

"I hope you don't mind that I don't want anyone to know yet…" Sirius murmured into her hair, his cheek resting on the side of her head. She giggled.

"No, I don't mind. I think the whole sneaking around, can't be seen together…it's kind of…romantic and mysterious. It has a suspense quality to it. A, 'what's-going-to-happen-next' quality." He nodded and began to trace her back with one of his hands.

"Well, I'm glad you feel that way then, 'Lette."

"I'm glad you're glad I feel that way, Siriy."

He groaned, "_Stop _with that name, it's so unmanly…"

She leaned in and kissed him, slowly and teasingly, before backing away. "I will call you _whatever_ I want, and you will like it."

"Yes ma'am." He said in a low whisper before capturing her lips again with his own.

* * *

Frank rested on the ground of the quidditch field, Alice next to him, their hands intertwined in between them. He looked at her and leaned in closer to kiss her, a kiss which Alice happily complied to.

"You know, I always wondered why you never tried out for the quidditch team…you're a marvelous flyer, and you're probably faster than Justin and Jillian combined."

He shrugged, "I dunno."

Alice stared at him for a moment before shifting on the picnic blanket. "Um, okay." A small round of silence passed them before Alice said, "So what do you fancy doing, then?"

Frank smirked and leaned in one more time, and Alice held up a finger to prevent him from doing so. He slowly opened his eyes and looked up into her own. "Yes?"

"I don't want to snog, Frank."

He watched her for a moment, his expression unreadable, before asking, "What?"

"You heard me." She repeated, crossing her arms over her chest. "I don't want to."

"I don't understand…" He said one more time, scratching his head in confusion. Alice threw her hands up in aggravation and stood up.

"Nor do I! We're close friends for the longest of times, and we fancy each other for the majority of it. Then we finally get together, it goes great for ahile, and now all of a sudden the only thing you're interested in is _snogging_!"

Frank stood up too and raised his arms for a hug, "I'm sorry babe, I didn't mean it like that, I just – " Alice took a step back. Frank froze.

"No."

"Er…"

"No, Frank. I think I'm going to head to my room now." The girl quickly began to make her way off the quidditch field.

Frank started after her after a moment of yelling, "Alice! Alice, wait!"

She barked back a "No!" before breaking into a run, Frank staring wildly after her.

"What the hell did I do wrong?" He groaned and sat back down on the picnic blanket, mulling over the mystery he had come to know as Alice Prewett.

* * *

Remus opened the door to the astronomy tower, allowing Macy to go in first.

"Why thank you, kind sir." She walked in past him smiling, a smile which he gladly returned, before he shut the door after them. The scene that Remus had laid out was a beautiful one – he had brought up a small picnic blanket like last time, but instead of just looking out the side of the astronomy tower as they ate, he had temporarily cleared the entire ceiling (of course, with_out_ the professors' knowledge) so they could just sit back and look up.

"Wow…" She breathed out, looking up at sky. Remus smiled coyly and rubbed the back of his head. "It's beautiful."

"It was no problem…really…" He muttered shyly. Macy turned towards him, her baby blue sundress ruffling from the wind under her white sweater.

"It's perfect."

She walked over to him and placed a hand on his chest, right over his heart. He placed his hand on top of her own and leaned down to kiss her forehead, and as he did so, another wind blew, causing her light blonde, wavy hair to fly out from behind it's tucked place behind her ears, and fly in between his lips right as he was bout to press them down on her forehead. He backed away in embarrassment while Macy laughed, and he just rolled his eyes.

"Let's try that again." He pulled her down onto the ground, and once they were both in a sitting position, he leaned over and pressed his lips to her cheek. She sighed, and he backed away in surprise.

"What?"

"It's almost April...and then in three months, it will be June." She murmured, her eyes casting upwards into the dark, cobalt sky. "And then after that…no more Hogwarts, or seeing you everyday, or …" Her voice trailed off, and she sighed again. "I'm dreading each passing day."

"Don't, Macy." He gave her hand a comforting squeeze. "You have the whole future to look forward to…"

"But Remus, you don't…"

He offered her a small smile. "I know that. I've accepted that a long time ago."

"But I still haven't!" She cried, her voice rising. Remus looked taken back. "You're one of the most brilliant wizards in our year, and your quick and smart and skilled and a good student and respectful, but all everyone else is going to see is that you're a werewolf!" She then added in a much quieter voice, "It's not fair…"

"You're right. But that's life. I don't want you to worry about me, or for me to hold you back. I want you to achieve everything I know you're capable of. Do it for me, and Lily, and Violet, and Alice, but most importantly…do it for yourself. Because for however good I am, you're ten times better, and deserve it so much more than I do."

Macy's eyes locked with his own, and such love and adoration and happiness shone in each person's eyes so thoroughly, that you could only wonder what was brighter – them, or the stars above.

* * *

I walked into the Heads' dorms and sat down on the couch before beginning to open my bag. It was two before eight, which meant that if James didn't come soon, I could leave.

I put my wet hair up into a loose bun, allowing a few pieces to stray out of it, while tucking my legs under myself. After my bath, I had settled into a comfy pair of green, plaid pajama bottoms and a tighter fitting, white shirt. I had sat in the bath until it was cold and bubble-less, deep in thought the whole time. I didn't even know what about. I was just…thinking. About everything.

James and Jillian were still together, which, well…sucked. And Macy and Remus were together, and Frank and Alice were together, and I reckon Violet and Sirius will get together soon…I felt like my friends were leaving me and entering this new, bizarre world of relationships. And they were leaving me behind.

I knew it was a stupid thing to worry about, but…it was something so easy to worry about, at the same time. I felt so lonely, all the time, and anytime someone brought up a relationship I felt like barking at them, like with Alice earlier today. It was so irritating. And the worst part was that no matter what I told myself, the feeling wouldn't go away.

I sighed and checked the clock on the wall – one minute. He'd better hurry. Oh, I really didn't want to be here. I groaned and leaned my head onto the back cushion, when I was suddenly hit with a delightful aroma of quidditch and cologne.

I spun my head around and inhaled a bit more of it. As much as I enjoyed the scent, I noticed something else about it…it was fresh. I checked around the room – the source of it was so close, if I could just find it…

I climbed off the couch and walked around it, only to find a grey sweatshirt on the ground, almost as if someone had missed the back of the couch when taking it off. I picked it up and inhaled it one last time – the smell was addicting. Bloody hell, it was _really _addicting. I closed my eyes in sheer delight for a moment before shaking my head. If James' sweatshirt was down here, then most likely he was in his room, probably waiting for me to come.

I picked it up and threw it over my arm before starting my way up the stairs to the Head Boy's dorm. As I reached it, I saw the door to it slightly ajar, and heard the sounds of soft snoring coming from it. Or, rather, soft snore_**s **_coming from it. It sounded like there were two people in there…

When the smell of jasmine and spice wavered into my nose, something seemed to click in my head, and my eyes began to sting with tears.

I ran down the stairs as silently as I could, snatched my book bag, and darted out of the room, my bare feet padding down the stone floor corridors. I would have been completely unnoticeable, for I was silent, except for the small noises coming from my mouth – choked sobs.

I ran until I had reached my dorm room, and it was when I was there that I realized that I had brought James' sweatshirt with me. I angrily stuffed it into the closet before throwing myself onto my bed, burying my head into the pillows and willing myself not to, under any circumstances, cry. He was not worth it. He was not worth it. He was not worth it. He was not worth it. He was not worth it. He was not worth it.

He was worth it. And I hated it.

_**A/N woo, three thirty and still up, that's a record. :D sorry I haven't uploaded in so long guys…Really…I'm sorry…I've had so much going on, like school and friends and boys, and I had a party last night and there was a carrot fight and I spent an hour cleaning it up and tending to my bruises…ah, but it was worth it.**_

_**This chapter was, for the most part, a filler chapter. I'm sorry if it lacks the deep emotion you guys all look forward to in my writing :/ There are some few key, important parts in here, like Jillian's little speech, Alice and Frank's fight, Macy's upset feelings about Remus' condition, Sirius and Violet's non wanting to tell anyone about their affairs, and James and Lily's current standing of hating each other again. Though through Jillian we find out that's not so true…**_

_**There's a lot of skipping around in this, sorry about that. I thought it was interesting that they all had something planned at eight though...coincidence? Maybe. Or not? You guys figure it out...**_

_**Chapter inspiration:**_

_**You could be happy – snow patrol. This song is brilliant. I cry to this song when I'm upset over a boy (which rarely happens, so this should show you how special this song is to me.)**_

_**Don't you – Darren Criss. What can I say, he's my future husband.**_

_**Thank you to all of you who have continued to support my story, even though I haven't updated in so long…It's because of you guys that I keep going. So, thank you, all of you. You don't know how much I appreciate this. Really.**_

_**Thanks, you guys! I love you all!**_

_**Roxalicous, Xoxo**_


	12. Chapter 12

"It's funny; I don't remember letting her borrow my shirt. Maybe she's lying." Jillian mused while examining her nail. I shrugged.

"Or maybe you just forgot."

"Maybe."

I turned towards the blonde girl next to me, her snug white blouse hugging her every curve and her pleated black skirt resting just above mid-thigh. She looked like a prostitute. I stifled a laugh.

"Hey, there's James – I'll see you later Lily." Jillian raised a hand and waved it at me while she made her way over to the empty chair next to Potter. I waved back at her before I looked around the room for my own place to sit. When I spotted someone beckoning for me to come over, I felt my heart skip a beat.

My smile lit up as I walked towards the boy waiting for me, his tousled bronze hair swept charmingly to the side and a mischievous sort of glisten in his eyes.

"Lily." His voice was wonderful and great and I felt reminiscent as I remembered how brilliant my name always sounded on his tongue. "How was your day?" Before I could respond to the comment, he was out of his seat; his arms are around me and embracing me in a hug. I laughed into his shoulder while breathing in his musty, teenage boy smell of burning wood and expensive cologne. It felt so familiar, it was almost scary.

"I've been good, Rob." It felt so weird to say his name. It was almost…unnatural. I ignored the strangeness left in my body as I took a seat next to him in DADA class, pulling out my book and quill from my book bag.

I felt two pairs of eyes on me from the back corner of the room. I didn't need to look to know that it was James and Jillian, for this has happened every single time I conversed with the boy next to me. I ignored them. I was not going to think about them. Not now.

"That's good. I haven't been bad myself either. Quidditch has been interesting lately. Weiss was injured, so Potter's taken his spot as seeker and I'm filling in for him as chaser. He's been running us around like crazy lunatics, preparing for our upcoming scrimmage against Ravenclaw. I don't know why he's so hectic about it – it's not like it even counts anyway." I nodded, though I wasn't fully listening.

"He's probably just trying to look all man-like in front of his dearest Jillian." I gave my head a little nudge over my shoulder to point to them. "It's almost disgusting, the public affection they give each other." I didn't even bother to hide the resentment in my voice. This time, Rob was the one who nodded, though he looked a little anxious and a tad bit on edge.

"That's true; you know how we men are…" He reached for his tie and tugged it looser, his hand shaking a bit, but I merely shrugged as the professor began his lesson.

"Alright, students! Today, I was going to demonstrate the effects of certain misused spells on a small group of frogs I had collected, but someone seems to have released them during my lunch break…" Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Macy smirk triumphantly, and I couldn't help but laugh into my hand. "…So for today, I'm going to give you a free period to do whatever you'd wish. You may be dismissed."

I heard Sirius bark out a cheer and Alice give a happy squeal before I booked it out of the room, Rob next to me and the other Gryffindors and Ravenclaws behind us.

"What luck, eh?" I gave a small smile to rob before lightly tugging on his shirt sleeve.

"Come on, let's go to the library – I want to finish some studying before I have detention tonight. You can test me on Flitwick's exam, yeah?" Rob rubbed the back of his neck coyly.

"Yeah, um, about that…I have to be somewhere. I apologize, Lily." He added quickly upon seeing my face fall. "I just made a prior commitment to someone." I nodded, my eyes shifting to the floor. I don't know why I'm so upset by this.

"Yeah, I totally get it. Completely fine, really."

"Hey." He caught my chin between his forefinger and thumb, and the feel of human flesh on my skin was so amiable and pleasant, I forgot to breathe. He angled my face upwards so that it faced his. "I'll be waiting for you in the common room tonight, alright? We can study then."

"Never mind that. I reckon I'll be too tired." I flash him my teeth and bat my eyes a few times. "Don't wait up."

"Of course I'm going to wait up. Catch you later, Lily." He let go of my chin, and I watched as his hand fell to his side before he walked away, his feet slapping noisily on the stone floors of the hallway.

I sighed and tucked my hair beneath my ear. Why did he always have to leave, and so early on into our plans?

"Well, Lily. I see you and Rob have become fairly closer." I spun around to see Jonathan standing behind me, a grin etched on his face and a book in his arms. I raised an eyebrow at him.

"It's the charms book Flitwick told you to read before the exam tomorrow. Figured you might be wanting it." He threw the book over to me, and I caught it with ease. My hand traced over the worn, thin cover, and the tremendous feel of a book under my fingers made them tingle in delight.

I'm such a nerd.

"You're honestly the most wonderful person in the world, have I ever told you that?" He laughed and put a hand on my shoulder to guide me forward.

"Only a few hundred times. Let's go to the Great Hall and get a start on dinner – I love being the first ones there, it always means the best food." He continued to push me with his hand, and I couldn't help but laugh.

"They always say that the way to a man's heart is through his stomach…" I mused, eying him suspiciously. He smirked.

"The funny thing is, you're screwed, considering you can't cook." I shoved him, rather roughly, off my shoulder.

"You're mean."

"No, I'm refreshingly honest." He gave me a cheeky smile, and I rolled my eyes before wrenching open the doors of the great hall to walk in.

* * *

"I expect three things – silence, sparkling trophies, and both of you still alive. You may begin." McGonagall shut the door behind us, and nearly the second after she did, James threw himself on the ground and laid his head against the wall.

"I'm so beat. Quidditch sucks."

"So I've been told." He raised his eyebrow curiously at me, but I just began to polish the first thing I saw, which happened to be an academic record trophy for the graduating class of 1897. This was how detention always went – me polishing, him sleeping. And I didn't mind it that way. It was better when we didn't talk. It meant less opportunity for me to hear him rant about _Jillian. _God, it was sickening, how much they were always all over each other.

"From who?" I continued to rub the award until it began to sparkle. I put it down and moved onto the next one.

"None of your business."

"Oh, come on, Evans." The use of my surname caused, just like every other time I heard it come out of his mouth, a cold sting to spin in the pit of my stomach until I felt like throwing up. I was used to the feeling by now, though, so I just continued my work.

"I fancy a butterbeer."

"And I fancy you shutting your mouth."

"Is that what you say to Jillian? I heard she's a screamer." Before I could stop them, the words fell out of my mouth, and in a way harsher than intended. Silence reigned throughout the room, and I awkwardly continued to clean the trophies until I heard shuffling.

James stood up and fixed his trousers before checking the watch on his wrist. I heard him gasp and mutter a few curse words under his breath before running a hand through his hair.

"Hey, um, Evans?"

"Mhmm…"

He urgently looked to the door, then back at me. "I, uh, have to be somewhere. Like, now. Is there anyway you can finish this up without me?"

I sighed. Of course. Probably sneaking off to meet Jillian somewhere. I didn't even bother to hide the thickness of disapproval in my voice. "Go on."

He seemed to have sensed that I really, despite what I said, was not okay with it. And he, being James Potter, couldn't just leave it at that – he ruffled the back of his hair and quieted. I continued to polish. A few moments passed where we just stood there.

Awkward.

I glanced at him from underneath my dark, fiery hair, and noted how his face looked solemn and was scrunched up in thought – he seemed to be debating something.

"Ah, I can't believe I'm doing this…" He shook his head and looked up at me. "Lily, come on."

His voice was quiet and silky, feeling like velvet to my ears. I looked over at him, and he just raised his eyebrows, silently waiting for my response. He moved his eyebrows a lot.

It was kind of cute.

"What?" He grabbed his wand out of his pocket and pointed it at the trophies – in a flash, they glistened beautifully, the previous dust and grime on them disappearing.

My mouth fell open as I sputtered out illegible words in shock. "You can't just….McGonagall…kill us – you can't just – "

James rolled his eyes and grabbed my elbow, pulling me out of the room. "Listen, I get that you're a goodie-two-shoes – but this is something important I have to do." His voice suddenly turned serious. "You can't talk, and you definitely can't tell anyone about this. Think you can do that?"

I tried to tear my arm away from him. "Potter, we're going to get in so much trouble if McGonagall gets back before we do! And then we'll get more detentions, or even worse – suspension!"

He crept out of the room slowly, looking both ways, before yanking me, _hard, _out of the room after him. He began down the hall at a quicker pace, and I trudged after him, desperately trying to free my arm from his grasp. I clawed and scratched at it pathetically – his hold did not slacken.

How did I get myself into these situations?

"Potter, where are we goi-" He threw his hand over my mouth, causing a small squeal to erupt from it, and pulled me into a room, pushing me against the wall and pressing a finger to his lips to indicate not to talk. He cocked his head around the corner (I did the same), and as soon as we did, our eyes spotted Filch and Mrs. Norris turning the corner that we had just come down from.

We waited several minutes until they passed. The room was dark and smelt of old parchment. It took me a few moments to realize that this was the room James had kissed me in just over half a year ago. It felt like a decade ago.

"Come on." He whispered into my ear, and it was just then that I realized how close I was to him, with his chest pressed up against my back and his breath on the bottom of my neck. I shivered in pleasure.

He grabbed my elbow once more and led me out of the room and into the darkly lit hallway, pulling me behind him in a steady pace. His hand never left my arm – not that I minded. It was a curious feeling, being this close to him after so much loathing him and wanting him at the same time. I couldn't decipher whether or not I liked it.

"Where are we going, Potter?" He ignored me and continued to drag me down the hallway, and then down the next, and the next…

"Potter? Where are you taking me?" I could feel myself becoming more and more frustrated with each step. "Potter? Potter!" I finally snapped. "_James!"_

He stopped dead in his tracks and turned around, his temple pulsing. "What?"

"Tell me where you are taking me." It was a statement, a command, rather than a request. He glared holes into my eyes, and I just glared back. Eventually, his eyes softened, and he let go of my elbow and rubbed the back of his neck. I felt suddenly cold.

"Remus told me you know about his, er…condition." I nodded. "And you don't care?"

"Of course not." I said quietly, my eyes drifting towards my feet. "He's one of my best friends. It doesn't matter to me what he is or isn't – he's still Remus."

James nodded, and after a second of silence, asked "Before I tell you where we're going, do you mind telling me how you found out?"

I shrugged. "I guess I don't mind." I looked up and studied his face for a moment – it was trained on my own. The intensity of his gaze made me blush, and I turned my head to the side and spoke to the wall rather than to him.

"One night in fifth year, when I was out late studying for Slughorn's exam the next day, I heard the four of you going somewhere. Of course, being me, I had to find out what you were doing; so, I followed you. When I saw you were going to the shrieking shack, I knew something big was up – so, I took careful mental notes of how you got past the whomping willow, and followed into the tunnel after you.

"That's when I heard it." I shuddered at the mere memory of it. "The worst sound to ever reach my ears – it was so sad and pathetic and frighting, it didn't even sound like a human had made it. But when I crept up to the very opening of tunnel and the shack, I saw Remus, curled up on the ground, looking like the saddest thing I had ever seen, slowly turning into a werewolf. I was so scared. I didn't know what to do. I felt frozen in my spot.

"Luckily, in my fright, Sirius saw me, and before Remus had transformed all the way, sprung to my side and pulled me back down the tunnel and up to the castle grounds again. If he hadn't been there, if he hadn't seen me…" I shook my head. "I don't want to think about what could've happened. I owe him my life."

James watched my face for a long time. I didn't turn to face him – I wasn't strong enough to face those hazel eyes of his. Finally, he murmured more to himself then to me, "So that's why you have a soft spot for him…"

I giggled quietly and rubbed my forearms. "I guess you could say so." I finally looked up at him. "So, will you tell me where we're going now?"

His eyes scanned over my face one last time before he started down the hallway again. I trailed after him. "Every night after the full moon, we Marauders go Thestral riding to ease some of the post-full-moon tension. I figured you could come if you wanted, since I felt like a prat just leaving you alone in detention like that."

I found my heart beat quickening – me, being included in a Marauders' tradition? I couldn't help but let my mind wander as I wondered if Jillian had ever been presented with this once in a lifetime opportunity like I had just been.

"You sure your friends will be okay with it?" I asked a little nervously.

James chuckled. "Evans, they like you more than they like my girlfriend – I'm sure none of them will mind." My heart swelled at the comment, and I had to remind my body to breathe, for my mind was moving too fast to subconsciously take care of it anymore.

We walked in silence for the rest of the time, though it was not a tense one – it was comfortable, to say the least. It was just the two of us. Just me and Potter. Just us. Just James and Lily. Our names went well together. Sounded well together. Why couldn't he see that?

When we hit the last hallway, James fidgeted with his shirt, and low and behold, pulled a cloak out from underneath it. I eyed him questioningly.

"Er…"

"Just get under it, Evans." I didn't bother to inquiry him. I walked towards him, and he threw the cloak over my shoulders and his own so we both were covered by the material. It was silky and thin, almost as light as air, and it took me a moment to realize what it was.

"Wait, is this an invisibility cloak?" I asked in an outraged voice. So _that's _how he always got away with everything!

He chortled and nodded. I tried to ignore the close proximity between us as his aroma drifted in and out through my nose, overwhelming my sense of smell with delight. "Not as dumb as she looks, folks."

"I beg your pardon?" He laughed and began to walk towards the front doors of the castle, quietly muttering a charm under his breath so they opened, and together, we squeezed through the doors and into the cold night. Instantly, my flushed skin cooled, and I sighed in content.

"Come on, we're heading to the forbidden forest." I gasped, and he quickly added, "Don't worry, we've done this so many times before – I know the forest like I know the back of my hand. We'll be fine."

I nodded.

When we reached the edge of the forest, he removed the cloak, and I breathed in the wonderful smell of the outdoors. "Come on." He made his way into a thicket of the forest, and I gulped and walked in after him.

"There you are, Prongs, we've only been waiting for you for…" Sirius looked past James and stared at me. I sheepishly grinned at him. "Well, seems like you brought a friend with you, then. Glad it's not Jillian."

"Told you, Evans."

Sirius smirked and flicked his dark hair out of his eyes before walking over to me and picking up my hand. "How nice of you to accompany us tonight, Lily darling." He lightly pecked my hand, and I giggled girly-like and stupidly. He was just too charming.

"It's my pleasure, Sirius dearest." He dropped my hand and turned towards James, who was laughing and rolling his eyes.

"Well, as much as I'm enjoying this," Peter said, impatiently crossing his arms over his chest, "I want to get to some Thestral riding, okay? Let's get going." Remus waved at me (I returned the motion) before he followed Peter further into the woods. Sirius ran to catch up to them, and I fell back from the group, James doing the same.

"Can you see Thestrals?" I asked him, looking up to meet his gaze. He nodded. I frowned. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be." He said softly, blowing his messy, dark bangs out of his eyes. "In case you're wondering, it was my grandfather who passed away." He laughed, though it sounded a tad bitter. "He got me my first broom. Taught me how to play quidditch. And, he introduced me to Sirius. But, he was a retired auror, and couldn't just sit around with you-know-who rising to power. He had to go out and fight." His shoved his hands into his pockets. "I always admired him."

"I'm sorry." I repeated again without thinking. He laughed, and the sound of it caused the corner of my mouth to twitch upwards in a faint grin. "You don't listen very well, do you?"

I shook my head. "What about you? Can you see them?"

"Nope. This sounds real bad too, but I've always wanted to be able to." I muttered, kicking a small stick with my foot. James raised an eyebrow at me.

"Yeah, that does sound kind of bad. But even though you can't see them, it doesn't mean they aren't there." And the next thing I knew, he was grabbing me by my waist and hoisting me up into the air. I shrieked in surprise, and quickly became scared when my body came in contact with something invisible.

I was on a Thestral.

I blinked rapidly, not believing my eyes – it looked as though I were riding air. There was, seemingly, nothing under me – and yet, I felt the steady heartbeat of a living animal, felt the non-flesh of a Thestral, felt the movement of an existing thing. It was miraculous. I couldn't believe what was happening.

"Hey! Look!" I cried happily, wrapping my arms around what felt like the Thestral's neck. James watched me amusedly. "I'm on a Thestral! I'm riding a Thestral!"

He laughed. It was like music to my ears. "Good job. Think you can stay on it for longer than a minute?"

"Er…" Suddenly, it didn't seem like such a good idea to be riding an animal that I couldn't even see. "Well…I might be able to pull it off without getting any fatal injuries…"

James rolled his eyes before lifting himself into the air and hopping on the Thestral in front of me. "Come on, let's go for a ride. Hold on tight." Without a second thought, I found myself flying into the air, and I screamed in fear, my arms clamping around James' waist. The air whipped through my long, auburn hair, and the cold wind stung my skin – but as soon as I looked down and saw the glistening water of the Black Lake, the stars reflected in its surface, I forgot the small pain and found myself in awe at the beautiful sight below me.

I found my face snuggling into the warm fabric of James' uniform button down and inhaling the addicting scent I had come to know as him. The moment was perfect – rather, would have been perfect, if there weren't just one small detail in the way – Jillian.

James was taken. I couldn't do this. It wasn't right. It wasn't fair. Not to Jillian, not to James, but most importantly, not to me. I couldn't keep torturing myself by allowing these emotions and feelings to keep resurfacing for him.

"James." My voice cracked as I blinked away tears. Why was I getting so worked up about this? He was just a boy. Just a boy.

"Are you okay, Lily?" The urgency in his voice made my chest swell in hope, but I just shook my head.

"I want to get down."

He was just a boy.

Without another word, we flew down towards the ground, and James hopped off the Thestral and extended his arm to me. I ignored the motion. Instead, I went to the opposite side and began to slide myself off the Thestral. Unfortunately, being Lily Evans, I was not the most coordinated person – and I toppled off the side of the animal.

"Whoa, careful there." James swooped to my side as I was about to hit the ground and grabbed put one hand on the small of my back, the other on the side thigh, and caught my fall. His hands on me felt tremendous – I wanted more. I want to feel him, touch him, breathe him. But I couldn't.

"S-Stop that." I swatted his arms away, and he shrunk back in confusion. I whipped my head around and began to make my way towards the castle.

"Hey, Evans, what's up?" I continued to walk towards the castle, dodging low branches and small shrubbery, ignoring James. "Evans? Hey!" he grabbed my forearm, and a rush of heat surged through me. I desperately tried to tear my arm from his grasp. Did he not know the effect he had on me?

"What's wrong?" He asked in a voice so gentle it made me want to melt into a puddle at his feet. I could listen to it all day. I could watch him all day. He was beautiful. He was perfect.

No, he was an arrogant, stupid, irritable git. He was just a boy.

"Lily." He pleaded, and his fingers tingled as they touched my skin, leaving wonderful sensations of enjoyment on my body.

He was just a boy.

"Don't, James." I begged. He scrunched up his eyebrows in confusion. Dammit, why did he have to be so cute?

"What did I do wrong?" And then, those five simple words, triggered something inside of me – I felt as those an explosive went off, a firework in my stomach, and suddenly I was yelling hysterically at him.

"What do you mean, _"What did I do wrong"?_ You…broke my heart." I finished weakly, and my knees began to strain as I wished nothing less than to just crumple and break and fall to the ground in the pathetic heap of sadness that my emotions had become in the last month.

Instead of looking shocked or frightened by my words, he whispered, "I'm sorry."

I grew irritated. "No, you're not, James. This isn't fair. Not to me, not to Jillian. It's not right."

The corners of his mouth tugged downwards in a frown, and his right eyebrow twitched in annoyance. "Seems like you've moved on anyway – I see you and Rob. You like him, don't you?"

_No._

"That's none of your business. Besides; it wouldn't have made a difference."

James closed some off the distance between us until he raised one of his hands to trace the jaw line of my face. "Yes, it would have made all the difference in the world." I nuzzled my head closer to it.

Oh no. I was falling into the cycle all over again. I had to get out.

"Lily…" his other hand crept to the small of my back, rubbing soothing circles in it as he pulled me closer. I inhaled his handsome scent and hummed in response, my senses going haywire in sheer contentment. It was too much. I felt like I was suffocating. Drowning. But I didn't want it to stop.

His nose bumped against mine, and I felt his breath on my face. It was intoxicating; addicting. It was like a drug. I need him. I needed more. I needed more, more, more. I needed James.

He was just a boy.

I felt my knees caving in, my mind freezing, my heart beating so fast and so hard it felt like it was going to burst at any moment. It hurt. But it was the best feeling in the world.

"Lily, I like you." He whispered in my ear, his lips ghosting over the skin there. A round of chills travelled up and down my spine, and my body ached and yearned for him. It was unnatural. "I like you so much, its terrifying." He said once more, and I felt him sigh onto my neck. My body screamed in bliss, but my mind screamed in terror. This could not be happening.

I took a step away from him. It required more willpower than I thought I possessed. He was so addicting.

His face dulled as I distanced myself from him. I sighed. "I'm not going to wait forever, James."

His face grew solemn. "I know."

We stared at each other. When I felt hot flames licking at the insides of my throat, burning them, and wet, steaming tears pushing at the back of my eyes, I finally lost it. I turned away sharply and broke out into a sprint. I didn't stop until I was at the enterance of my dorm room, and it was there when I realized, that he was not just a boy. This was not just a crush. This was something so much bigger than that.

* * *

"Come in, Ms. Evans." I coyly swung open the door to McGonagall's office, her face soberly staring at mine from behind her desk. My eyes scanned over the two chairs in front of her – one, which was occupied by James, and the other, which was meant for me. I gulped and sat down in the open one, being especially careful not to look at James. Especially not after the events of last night.

"I assume you both know why you're here?" I nodded grimly, and out of the corner of my eye, I saw James do the same. McGonagall cleared her throat and folded her arms on her desk.

"You two skipped detention last night." She stared at me, her dark eyes boring a hole into my head, which hung in shame. Her eyes then shifted to James. "I'm going to have to punish you." Yep, I knew it, goodbye Hogwarts, goodbye magic, goodbye, everyon- "unless, you can answer me one question."

My heart skipped a beat, and I looked up at her. "As much as I hate rumpus and tomfoolery, the one thing I hate more is when friendship is put at risk. When you two left, I was watching you from down the hallway – and you left together."

I nodded eagerly, looking up at her with hopeful eyes. "Even though skipping detention is completely frowned upon, I am willing to overlook it – if you two are friends again."

I blinked at her.

James cleared his throat. "Sorry, what?"

"Gryffindors are known for their bravery." She started, pushing back her chair to begin pacing in front of us. "And I believe it requires a great amount of bravery to apologize, not to an enemy, but to a friend. If you two have made dues and promise to be on better terms throughout the remainder of the school year, I will forget this little fiasco, and just give you one more double-detention, rather than a suspension. Understood?"

I nodded quickly, James mimicking the motion to the left of me. "Yes, ma'am." We chorused anxiously. She nodded.

"Very well. Now, out of my office, both of you." I jumped out of my seat and scurried to the door, wrenching it open and making my way out of it, James just behind me. Once the door was shut, he grabbed my hand in his own.

"Wait, Evans." Oh so, it was back to last names. Just like first year. Square one.

Square one.

We were back to square one.

Six years later, so many hardships, so many things endured, and for what? For it to be ripped apart in less than a month.

One person wasn't supposed to feel all these emotions as once. It didn't happen, and for a reason – it sucked.

It wasn't safe.

"Lily, can we just…start over?" The words caused a sear of pain and happiness to rush into me, and my heart plummeted to my stomach. I couldn't tell if this was a good thing or not. Should I feel relieved? Upset? It was too incomprehensible. I couldn't distinguish good feelings from bad feelings – the blood pounding in my ears and the small shake of my hands, but the want to just dance and sing in delight. It didn't make sense.

"I think…" I glanced up into his face. I saw it differently than I had once before. I saw a clean slate – something I've anticipated and awaited for since things changed at the dance. It took a single moment – a single action, a single touch – for things to change. I cannot tell if this is good or bad.

"…That sounds great."

"Friends?" There was a hint of hesitation and longing and desperation in his voice that didn't go by unheard, and all I wanted to do was tell him no, my heart is screaming no, yelling for my body to take a stand against the words that are about to come from my mouth, but before I could do anything, they tumbled out, pathetically and tenderly and so emotionally that they're barely above a whisper.

"Friends."

And then, the next seconds pass in a blur as he barely lifted his arms, opening them enough only for another smaller human being to fit in them, and then I'm wrapped in them, and he's breathing into my hair, and my arms are shaking and hugging him back, and my heart beat was so fast and loud and noisy I wondered if he could hear it, or feel it, or sense it. And then, the moment ended, and he was walking away from me, towards the awaiting Jillian, her hand outstretched, and he grabbed it and intertwined them, and I wanted to feel myself break – I wanted to feel myself crumble and collapse and fall to pieces, but I didn't. I couldn't. I felt nothing. I was numb.

It wasn't safe.

He wasn't safe.

He wasn't just a boy.

_**A/N damn, what a chapter. It focused completely on James and Lily – sorry, no further subplot continuations in this chapter!**_

_**For those of you who don't know, Thestrals are magical creatures that can only be seen by those who have seen death – emphasis on why James can, and Lily can't. Curious little animals, aren't they?**_

_**Musical inspiration – bloodstream – stateless. My favorite song right now. Its brilliant. Cant stop listening to it. also Safe - Britt Nicole. Both perfectly represent Lily's feelings in this.**_

**_Now, I know most of you are going to freak out when you read this chapter and be all like "WTF JAMES", but there's a reason behind his madness, I promise. Give it time._**

_**Thank you to all who have reviewed in the past and continue to review! Not only do they make me exceedingly happy, but they give me a lot of feedback that can help improve my writing skills a lot – so, really, they are much appreciated!**_

_**Thank you to you all, again! Love you! :)**_

_**XOXO Roxalicous**_


	13. Chapter 13

"I don't get it!"

"James, watch me." I carefully tipped the side of a vile above the cauldron, a few droplets of a golden liquid falling in. The potion below it bubbled and sloshed around for a bit before finally settling and turning into a light, cobalt color. His face scrunched up in confusion.

"How did you do that?"

"I followed the directions."

He scratched his head. "Oh."

I sighed and rubbed my temples. After all these weeks of tutoring, he still really was clueless.

"Why don't we call it quits for tonight, yeah?"

James gave me a relieved smile and leaned forward on his knees, offering me an apologetic look. "I'd say, I reckon that's a brilliant idea."

I closed my potions book and stood up, stretching my hands above my head.

"Tired?"

I grinned. "Just a bit. Think I fancy going to off to bed." He closed his own book and stood up too. "And yourself?"

"It's Avery Jackal's birthday today, and there's a huge celebration for it in the Ravenclaw tower. I think I'll try to sneak in there and see if they party like us Gryffindors."

I shook my head and followed him through the portrait hole ("Ladies first." He had insisted with a cheeky grin), and soon after, I was waving to him and heading down one side of the hallway, him down the other.

It was weird, being so close to him after such an eventful past week. I brushed a piece of auburn hair behind my ear and looked up at the ceiling – it was best to stop thinking about it.

* * *

"What's wrong with her?" I raised my eyebrows at Violet, whose face looked stoic, and then at Alice, who was looking slightly amused.

"I'm not quite sure…" Alice raised a hand and waved it back and forth in front of Macy's face, yet her eyes laid still and unflinchingly as a slight glaze coated them.

"This can't be good…" I sat down directly across from her and snapped a few times. "Macy? Macy, hey!"

I flicked her forehead, and her neck twitched in response. After blinking several times, she slowly turned to me and asked, "Yes?"

"What's up?" I asked, my voice threaded with concern. She gave me an uneasy smile and swallowed noisily.

"W-What do you mean?" I narrowed my eyes at her, and she sighed softly and gazed downwards at her breakfast plate, which was empty. "Don't look at me like that…"

"Macy, you're worrying us. You've been like this for the days now." Violet asked, taking a seat next to her and placing a hand softly on her back. Alice did the same on the other side, and soon, Macy's eyes were reddening as her voice began to choke back sobs.

"I-It's…its Remus." She said slowly, rubbing at her face ferociously as her eyes darted back and forth to see if anyone was listening.

"What about him?" When Macy didn't respond, Alice pressed harder. "You know you can tell us anything."

After a moment of silence passed, Macy whispered out, "W-We, um…_" _

"Can I have your attention please, staff and students?" I looked up to the Head table and saw Dumbledore, a solemn look on his face as his silver beard gleamed in the sunlight coming through the windows.

He sighed and scratched the side of his face lazily – he looked tired. "Now, I'm aware that we only have a few weeks left until Easter vacation, but I do believe it is uncalled for to magically enchant classrooms as pranks. Whoever tarnished Professor Flitwick's room will be in serious trouble for it later. But until then, Charms class for the rest of the day will be canceled. That is all." He fell into the chair behind him as the students went back to their affairs, and I spun my head around to smile at my friends.

"Yay! No charms next block!" Violet and Alice returned my smile, as did Macy, although hers looked more like a grimace.

"Delightful…" She mumbled bitterly while pushing her bench back and standing up. I gave her a look.

"You okay Macy?"

"Yeah, bloody brilliant." She snapped as she sauntered off to the enterance of the Great Hall.

"Uh oh…" Violet breathed while I sighed.

"I'd better go talk to her…" I said. Alice nodded.

"Go on, we'll catch up later."

"Okay."

I pushed my own bench back and began to walk after her. Not long after I had begun on my way, Frank stood up in front of me. "Hey Lily."

I watched as Macy's back rounded the corner before focusing my eyes on Frank. "Hello."

"So, um, has Alice said anything about me recently…?" He coyly asked while timidly rubbing the back of his neck. I raised an eyebrow at him.

"Should she have?"

"Well we, uh, sort of got into a…small disagreement the other night." Great, another problem for me to fix.

No, Lily, get out of bitch mode and help.

"Alright, and let me guess, you fancy me talking to her for you?"

"Well," he started, digging his hands in his pockets, "She's not listening to me."

"Will do, Frank."

He grinned at me and nodded his head. "Thanks a bunch, Lil."

I sighed, "Yep," before continuing out the hallway and up the staircase. Why did people always like to come to me with their complications? Did they think that I was always available to help because I have no visible social life? Well, I did have one, and a conflicted one at that, the boy that I lo-

Ahem. Like a tiny bit.

-is going out with someone else, whom I can't even hate because she decided to befriend me. I can't even wallow in self-pity either because I've had so much homework and tutoring and, Merlin. I really needed a break.

Before I knew it, I was up in my dorm room. "Macy? You in here?" I went over to her bed and pulled one of the maroon curtains away from it, only to reveal and empty bed. I put my hands on my hips and called her name one more time. When no one answered, I fell onto my bed face-first. I needed sleep so badly...Just a few minutes to rest…

"Yes, Lily?" So Macy was here…

I begrudgingly pulled myself up from the comfort of my bed and turned to talk to her when my face froze.

"Macy…" My eyes widened and I swallowed noisily. "What…What're you wearing?"

"What?" She asked, pulling _James' _sweatshirt tighter around herself. "I was cold and saw it on your bed, so I put it on. I didn't think you'd mind, seeing as it looks big for you anyway."

"Macy." I repeated, my voice cracking slightly. She was wearing James' sweatshirt. She was enveloped in his garment right now, his scent surrounding her, and his warmth radiating onto her. She was wearing it. "That's James' sweatshirt."

"I was wondering why it smelt so good." She giggled and hugged it closer to her body. "I didn't think you wore cologne." My eyes stayed glued to the grey material clinging to her body, and I couldn't help but feel burning flames of anger licking at my insides. I didn't know why I was getting so worked up about it. But for some reason, the thought of Macy wearing his sweatshirt made me feel sick inside.

"Are you bothered by it?" She asked quietly after I didn't respond. My eyes snapped up at her, and I gave her a forced smile.

"N-No, I'm fine." I tried to sound casual, and still I found my voice a few octaves higher than normal and dangerously close to cracking.

"Are you sure? I can take it off if you want." She started to pull one arm out of it, and I quickly stood up.

"No, keep it on, you're cold." I said, grabbing her arm and preventing the action. I needed to get a grip on myself. It was just a sweatshirt.

"Lily, I can see you don't want me to wear it. I get it, it's a possessive thing." She pulled it over her head and threw it back on my bed. "They say you get overprotective when you're in lo-"

I slammed my eyes shut and began shushing her. "Yeah, okay, let's not say that word when referring to me and James." When I reopened my eyes, she was giving me a quizzical look.

"Pardon?"

"I mean, I don't think…that _word _is totally appropriate to use. After all, its just school, we've never experienced anything outside of this…how do we know what that emotion is or what it feels like?" I sighed and grabbed his sweatshirt to begin folding it.

"Lily, look at me." I leisurely glanced upwards at the blonde, who was staring at me with a serious appearance in her eyes.

"Love."

I hissed at her, the word like poison to my ears. "Macy!"

"Why are you denying this, Lily?" And suddenly her voice was sharp, and she was glaring at me. "You don't think I see it?"

"See what?"

"How you look for him in the hallways, or how your face brightens up when you see him, or how you listen to that locket every night under your covers."

"I do not-"

"Please. You don't think we all can't hear it?" She said while rolling her eyes. Wow. Attitude.

"None of that is your business, Macy. And you think that's love? No." I scoffed. "That called a crush. Infatuation. _Maybe."_

"Even so." She said, her voice calming a bit. "Why won't you just admit how much you like him? It's so annoying that you're trying to seem above it all. But you can hurt, Lily. It won't make you weak. You can cry over a boy. It won't make you pathetic. I don't underst-"

"Shut up." I snapped. Uh oh. Bitchy Lily was coming out again. "You don't know what I'm feeling or what I'm thinking. None of that is true. So if you know what's good for you you'll stop now."

"Lily, you don't want to admit it, but you're _afraid."_ She said, the word being spit at me like venom.

"Excuse me?"

"That's right." She said, triumphantly placing her arms across her chest. "You're afraid of giving your heart to him in case he doesn't return it. You're a scared, little girl, and you won't even say it."

I fumed at her and whipped my hand into my pocket; it nearly inches away from my wand. I stopped myself in my tracks though. "And you think you're better than me then, because you're just _so _in love with Remus? No." I said, sticking my nose up at her. "It makes you a silly, lovesick, stupid girl."

"Maybe it does." She yelled, her voice rising in volume. She then began to walk towards the door, but before she left she turned around and added, very angrily, "But at least I have enough courage to admit what I'm feeling." And then she was gone, slamming the door behind herself.

I irritably kicked the side of my bed and cried out in aggravation. "Who does she think she is?" I mumbled before my eyes set on the sweatshirt. I angrily picked it up and threw it into the closet. "This is all your fault!" I screamed, my face scrunched up as tears formed in the corners of my eyes. After a few moments of pacing back and forth in my tracks, I ran out of the room and down the stairs. I didn't even know where I was going. I just needed to get my mind working so I could stop thinking about the emotional mess I was turning into.

The library. I'll go to the library, get a good book, and then go into the old transfiguration room for some quiet and reading until potions next block. Perfect.

I nearly ran to the library (if it weren't for Filch and Mrs. Norris patrolling the hallways) and grabbed the first book I saw to check out. I quickly read the title (_King Arthur and the Round Table of Warlocks and Wizards), _and after the librarian gave me the check out card, I slowly began to make my way to the old classroom. It was just what I needed. A drama-free zone.

I turned the corner and grabbed the knob of the old room and began to open it. As soon as I did, my eyes widened in shock, and my jaw dropped at least a foot.

There, in the middle of the room, was Jillian.

With Rob.

_Snogging._

The two spotted me and jumped a foot away from each other, both panting heavily. I stood there for a moment, my mouth opening and closing like a fish's, before shutting the door and turning around.

…What did I just see? Oh my Merlin…

Bloody _fuck. _

So much for drama-free…

* * *

"Lily? Lily, can you come talk to me for a minute?" Great. I knew this was going to happen eventually. But why _now?_

"Yes, yes, I'll be over there in a minute." I quickly packed my stuff and pushed my seat back in the Transfiguration classroom to move over next to Jillian. My mind was telling me that this conversation needed to happen, but every instinct in my body was telling me to abort now, to turn around and walk away…

I slumped into the chair next to her and plopped my belongings on my desk. It was two days after the incident, and I hadn't gotten any sleep on either nights. My body was tired from the lack of rest, and my mind was so fried I had almost failed my Charms quiz, if not for Sirius giving me the answers when Flitwick had turned around. I felt sick to my stomach already from my lack of self-care, and this situation wasn't making it any better.

"So, um, did you read the new edition of _The Daily Profit? _They did this new article on hair extensions and – "

"Let's just cut to the chase, Jillian. We both know what this is about." I said, lazily tying my hair up into a loose bun, leaving a few stray hairs out to frame my face. She gulped and clicked her perfectly manicured fingernails on the desk.

"Okay. Um, well, what did you _think _you saw? Because he was just helping me fix my earring which had previously fallen out, and – "

"Do you really have the nerve to lie to me?" I asked in a voice so cold I surprised even myself. She swallowed again and looked up at me from beneath her platinum blonde hair. "You know how I feel about James." I said quietly, staring down at my desk. "And you have the guts to tell me that you're _not _cheating on him and lying to him with every word you say?" I finally looked up at her, and she looked like she was on the verge of crying.

"…No, but I tried." She sighed and straightened her back before turning her head to look at me. "I'm cheating on James with Rob." She said very rapidly, almost as if spitting them words out as quickly as she could would change the disgust she knew I would still hold for her. "And it's wrong, and I don't know how I got into this mess, but you can't be mad at me, Lily…"

"Can't I?" I growled. "You date the boy you know I like, and then proceed to cheat on him? And I can't be mad?"

"It started off as a mistake, I promise Lily. We were both taking the Muggle Studies course this semester and we were practicing a scene from a theater play and there was a scripted kiss…"

"Doesn't mean you were any more right then than you are now. You cheated on him, and are _still _cheating on him." I said quietly, pulling a quill out of my notebook.

"Please, don't tell him. I know that's a lot to ask, but you have to promise me at least that. Lily." She said when she saw the grip on my quill tighten. "Please." I looked up at her, and I could've made a decision right there – I could have told her no, ran out of there, told James, and watched as they broke up. But something – maybe it was the desperation in her eyes or the pleading in her voice – triggered something inside me, and I was reminded briefly of…myself. She was scared. And so was I.

"…Fine." I sighed, and she breathed in relief. "But I swear Jillian, if you do anything else to hurt him – "

"I know." She finished for me and gave a curt nod. "I understand completely. Thank you, Lily." She gave me a faint smile that was a little sad. "Sometimes, I wonder why he chose me instead of you…" She then shook her head and got up as the bell rang. "I'll see you around, Lily." She walked over to the door, her short skirt swaying a little bit _too _much, her heels clicking loudly, and her head held up high, and I almost regretted my decision.

Then again, that was tired, bitchy, cranky Lily speaking who felt sick and desperately needed sleep and a potion to make her feel better.

I stood up and grabbed my books, which felt as heavy as cement under the tiredness of my body, and trudged out of the classroom and to my next class, Potions. We had a quiz today. Great.

I managed to sneak into class a minute late without getting caught by Professor Slughorn, and took the only open seat, which was next to Peter. He smelt of cheese and body odor, but I was at least glad that he offered me a friendly smile when I sat down.

"Alright, class. You have the rest of the block to complete quiz. The common assessment will be next week, and besides NEWTs, that's the biggest test of the year. Hope all of you are prepared." He began to hand out the quizzes, and as soon I got the parchment, my eyes grew to the size of saucers.

The first question was about Polyjuice Potion. We just made Polyjuice potion in class. I should know this. But yet, I couldn't find the answer. I searched my head, racked my brain for a result, yet I couldn't remember. My head felt like it was going to split open any moment, the aching in it so bad that I felt it pulsing in irritation.

"P-Professor?" I asked, shakily raising my hand.

"Yes?"

"Can I go to the infirmity? I'm not feeling very well…" I mumbled, massaging my temples. He gave me a sympathetic look.

"Go on."

"Thank you, sir." My legs groaned as I forced them to stand up and walk over to the door, and when I lifted my arms to open it, they felt as heavy as lead. Somehow, though, I managed to successfully get out into the hall, but not soon after I did, the world around me went fuzzy, and I felt my head colliding with the ground. Then everything faded to black.

* * *

"This is great." Violet sighed, looking at Sirius from underneath her long, dark eyelashes. He grinned.

"Really?"

"Yeah!" She exclaimed. "I never knew you had a poetic bone in your body."

His face reddened, and he snatched the parchment out of her hand. "Well, I dunno. I guess I just started writing when I was younger, and poetry was always the thing I liked best."

"I'm serious, though." ("Actually, I reckon I'm Sirius." He had countered with his old, infamous joke, and like every other time, Violet laughed and rolled her eyes.) She glanced at her boyfriend. "It's really, really good. You should consider pursuing this more – you have a talent."

He rubbed the back of his neck. "Thanks, 'Lette."

"No problem." She leaned forward to peck him, and he gladly responded. They both then leaned back and sighed up at the sky.

"What're you doing for vacation?" She asked him, playing with a lock of her hair. He shrugged.

"Not sure. I think Prongs and I are gonna go do something in London. Probably mess with some muggles." He laughed at the thought. "What about you?"

"I don't know, shopping. Traveling. Spa. The usual." She flipped her hair over her shoulder and smiled at him. However, Sirius was not smiling.

"And?"

"And what?"

"That's it?"

She nodded. "Pretty much."

"Alright, tell me." Sirius stated, repositioning his body to face her. "What's the story?"

"I don't understand the question…"

Sirius ran a hand through his hair. "Why are you so, I don't know, _material? _I know two sides of you, 'Lette – the kind, cute side that's a bit sarcastic, and likes me, even though I'm, well, me, and…this side. The 'let's go shopping' side." They locked eyes. "Why?"

She glowered at him. "You're making me sound like I have multiple-personalities."

"Well…"

"Don't respond to that." She folded her arms over her chest, and Sirius raised an eyebrow at her.

"So? Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why do you have two sides?" He smirked a bit. "I want to hear the story. Everyone has a sort of sad story that defines who they are. So what's yours? What happened in your childhood? Or did it happen more currently?"

Violet stayed quiet and locked her dark eyes with his. "I don't have one."

Sirius shook his head. "Don't believe it. So, what? Parents deprive you of love? Siblings get all the glory?"

She blinked a few times before saying, a little sadly, "No…nothing's wrong. My parents have been divorced for a few years now, but they both love me, and get me whatever I want whenever I want it. I have nothing to complain about." She sighed and picked at a piece of grass. "It would be nice to have a reason to complain though…"

Sirius reached for her hand and intertwined it with his own. "Want to elaborate?"

"I mean…" She shrugged. "I don't know. I wish there was something wrong with me, some…sad story, as you called it, which could define me. But there's nothing. I'm just a spoiled, pure-blood, rich kid. That's it." And for some reason, unknown to either of them, she stared to tear up, and Sirius knew enough to put an arm around her shoulder and tell her that everything was going to be alright.

* * *

Hmm…So comfortable…so soft and plushie…

Wait, what? Where was I?

I opened my eyes, and immediately, I regretted it, for they were hit with a burst of bright light. My head still ached, and I groaned as I threw an arm over it.

I remembered going to class, sitting down to take a test, asking to leave, getting to the hallway, and then…nothing. Black. Did I faint?

"Well, you're looking better than you did before." I tried opening my eyes again, and when I did, I saw Madame Pomfrey walking over to me with a goblet in her hands. "Here, drink this." She helped me sit up in my cot, and I shakily took the cup from her, barely muttering a 'thank you' before gulping down the potion.

"That should help with the pain from the head ache and cut on your head, but the potion won't completely heal either until tonight, when you're asleep. You're lucky you're in such good condition, Ms. Evans."

I finished my last sip of the drink and put it on the counter next to my cot. "Why's that?"

"If that young man didn't find you when he did, you might be in more critical condition." She said, giving me a knowing look. Then she added in a whisper, "He's easy on the eyes, too. You're lucky indeed…"

I looked around the room and spotted James with his back towards me, sitting next to a cot not too far away talking to Justin Weiss, his arm still bandaged. Justin, who was facing me on the other side of James, saw that I was awake and waved his good arm. James then turned around and smiled, doing the same. Suddenly the sick feeling in my stomach came back.

He said good bye to Justin and came over to my cot, sitting on the end of it. "Mr. Potter carried you here all the way from the dungeons, isn't that right?" Madame Pomfrey said, smiling happily at him. James sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck, and I couldn't help but smile, too – he was so cute.

"Alright Lily, I'm going to give you a pass to get out of your next class, and will do the same for you, James. I want you to take her to the kitchen to get her some food, and then as soon as that bell rings, I expect you in your sixth period class. Got it?" We both nodded, and she smiled. "Good. Now, let me check your arm, Justin…"

She hurried off to Justin's cot, and James placed a hand on the bare skin of my thigh. His skin tingled against mine, and I shivered. "Are you feeling okay? I went to go get a spare quill from my dorm really quickly, and I saw you on the ground in a heap. Gave me quite a scare." He chuckled while his thumb subconsciously rubbed circles on my milky skin, and I nodded.

"Yes, I think I'm good. Still tired, though. And hungry."

"Off to the kitchen! Man, I never thought a teacher would actually give me a pass to go and eat food…" I laughed while he got up. I swung my legs over the side of the cot and shifted my weight onto my feet. Immediately after I did, I regretted it, as my legs wobbled unsteadily. I gripped the side of the bed, and James swooped a hand under my arms.

"You good?"

Besides the fact that I had started blushing like an idiot, quite fine, actually.

"Y-Yeah. Thanks."

"No problem." He removed his hands from my shoulders, and we took a second step towards the doors. This time, my right leg completely gave under my weight, and I grabbed the medicine cabinet for support. He laughed. "You fail, Lily."

"Shut up."

"Come on." He bent over and turned away from me. I raised an eyebrow.

"What?"

"Get on my back, I'll carry you there."

I felt my insides squirm excitedly. Aww, he cared…

"You sure?"

"If I wasn't, I wouldn't be offering."

I looked at Madame Pomfrey and Justin, who were busy attending their own affairs.

"If you say so…" I slowly walked over to his back, pulling on the curtains for support, until I had successfully gotten on his back. I wrapped my arms around his neck, and his hands support me under my thighs. Soon, we were making our way to the kitchen.

His hair smelt clean, like shampoo, and his neck reeked off cologne while his shirt gave off a scent of quidditch. Just like always. I relished in the aroma until we found our way to the kitchen, where he seated me at the table. Elves bustled around busily around us as he made his way to the pantry.

"What're you in the mood for?"

"Food."

He laughed. It sounded sweet to my ears. "Okay. Want to be a little bit more specific?"

"Surprise me."

He shrugged. "Alright, I'll take a challenge."

He then began to rummage through the drawers and pantries for food and supplies, and I watched him work as he whistled a song. He looked so happy.

Then, my face fell.

He wouldn't be so happy when he found out Jillian was cheating on him…

I watched him for a little bit longer, his dark hair covering his hazel eyes, and his tie swishing back and forth with his movements. Should I tell him? I didn't want to be responsible for his sadness, but I knew he needed to know…

"J-James?"

"Lily?" he turned around and offered me a smirk, his face radiating and his smile beaming, and I watched him for a moment before offering him a weak grin in return.

"Thank you."

He chuckled, "You're welcome."

_**A/N Aww, James can be nice sometimes(:**_

_**I hope you guys don't eat me for not updating in foreveerrrr…sorry :/ but I've been really busy lately because I'm finishing up the school year and I have sports and graduation and stuff to do…but I'll be able to update a lot faster once june 23**__**rd**__** comes, because that's when I get out(:**_

_**I hope you guys liked this chapter! Thank you all for the continued support, reviews, and for just reading my stuff. You guys are so great to me, I couldn't ask for a better audience(:**_

_**Chapter inspiration – She will be loved – maroon 5**_

_**LOL for lots of love,**_

_**Roxalicous.**_


	14. Chapter 14

"So, how's the weather?"

Nice enough, you prat, now go away.

"…Eh, erm, w-what about that quidditch match today, against Hufflepuff, yeah? Reckon it will be a good time…"

Good enough time for you to leave me alone, I suppose?

"…NEWTS are coming up…"

Guess not…

"Really Lily – ignoring me isn't going to get you anywhere." Rob said, rubbing the back of his neck. I glowered at him through a piece of stray hair falling into my eyes and slammed my book shut. Nerve of some people…

As I pushed my chair out and attempted to get up from my little, secluded table in the back of the library, he reached out to grab my hand and keep me from doing so.

"Lily, come on, don't do this! Just talk to me already!"

My eyes snapped to where his skin touched mine - he retracted his hand almost immediately, as if my gaze burned him, and I scooped up my books and began to stride away from him. I heard the boy sigh behind me and slam his forehead on the desk before I pulled open the door to the library and went through it.

I walked down a few corridors, most of them empty. After all, it was a Saturday – most kids didn't spend their time in the school. Not when it was becoming so nice outside. I sighed; how I longed to be so carefree like the other students, but I just couldn't do it. Not with the war going on and me being muggle-born and all, along with the upcoming NEWTS, future career choices, my duties as Head Girl – it didn't leave room for a social life, and, well, that was okay. For now, anyway. I couldn't have any distractions. Luckily, Easter vacation was in just about a week – that would be a nice escape for awhile.

I turned the corner of the hallway and bumped into someone small. They let out a squeak of surprised, and I stumbled backwards.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't see you…" After I regained my balance, I looked up at the person I had walked into, and saw Macy, her expression much like one of a deer caught in headlights, "…there…"

She nodded and scampered off quickly, her flip flops making squishy noises with each step she took. "Wait, Macy," I tried, but she had retreated all too quickly, and by the time I had finished uttering the last syllable of my cry to her, she was at the end of the hallway and taking a sharp left. I stared after her for a second before sighing loudly.

I hadn't talked to her much since the fight we had in the dorm room a few days ago, and I could tell she wasn't exactly going out of her way to talk to me about it, either – in fact, I thought she was avoiding me for awhile until Alice confirmed the fact for me. The thought displeased me. I hadn't really understood what the fight was about – she was invading my privacy, so I had every right to be a _tad _bit angry with her (not as much as I was, though,), but she had no reason for her to direct anger towards me. She was frustrated at me for not pursuing James, which first off, wasn't her business, but second off…why was she so upset about it? I racked my brain for a reason, but couldn't find a reasonable one.

After getting back to my room and changing into a pair of jean shorts and a black _Beatles _shirt (a very popular muggle band in England), I slipped into a pair of flip flops and made my way down the stairs. I was heading towards the prefects' lounge for a quick debriefing of the upcoming spring formal.

The spring formal was the dance of the year. It happened within the last week of school, and it was only open to fifth years and up. It was a very big deal – who you went with, what dress you wore, and how you acted as a seventh year was the last image you left behind for most people. The spring formal was your last chance to impress until next year (unless, of course, you were graduating. Then it was your last chance to impress ever.), and what you did made a statement. It would commemorate who you were, who you used to be, and who you hoped to become.

Well, at least that's the melodramatic, teenage version of the spring formal.

To a handful of people, it was just a dance – but to even more people, everything else said was completely true and applied to the occasion.

Now me, being the over-achiever I am, had my mind set on making this spring formal the best Hogwarts has seen in years. The themes in the past have been satisfactory – enchanted garden, madrigal, swan lake, and, my personal favorite, modern city roof-top. However, this year, I was going to make it outstanding, breathtaking, and any other word you could muster that captured the emotion I was trying to catch by this dance.

Not soon later, I was in the room, surrounded by younger prefects, and (to my delight – though I would never admit to so,) James Potter.

"Great." I said after checking off the attendance list. "Everyone's here. Let's start this then, shall we?"

James grinned at me. "We shall." He coughed and cupped his hands around his mouth. "_Hey!"_

The excited and animated chatter in the room seized, and I smiled up at James. "Thank you, James."

"You're welcome, Lily dearest." I ignored the sarcastic, playful tone and cleared my throat.

"As you all know, there is a quidditch game tonight, in which members of the two playing quidditch teams may be dismissed early. However, if we all cooperate, I'm sure we will be able to finish with enough time to spare for you to get decent seats." Everyone murmured in agreement, and I pulled out a quill and spare parchment.

"Alright, first off – themes for the dance?" I asked while sitting on the loveseat next to the fireplace.

"Oh, easy." Amy Brown, a Slytherin in my year, said, waving her hand in the air, "Beach theme."

I scribbled it down. "Anyone else?"

"We could always do Italian renaissance, or Victorian era or something." Thoughtfully chirped a small fifth year girl. I wrote it down.

James spoke up, a crooked smirk on his face. "Heh, Gryffindor theme."

All the Gryffindors in the room cheered as a few Slytherins growled and several Ravenclaws stuck their nose up in the air. The Hufflepuffs really didn't seem to care – Gryffindor whipped them in everything anyway, who were they to argue?

"Nice try, James, but Dumbledore said we mustn't be biased about the themes." I chastised, sucking on the end of my quill. His eyes moved to my mouth momentarily before they shifted back upwards to me. He shrugged.

"Okay, quidditch theme." Suddenly all the boys seemed to straighten their backs and become interested in the conversation (minus Remus, of course, who was disappointedly shaking his head, as he had been listening the whole time, unlike the boys who had just heard a familiar sports word and began to.)

"No, James." I shot down immediately. A few people groaned.

His eyebrows furrowed. "Why not?"

"Well, because!" I started, suddenly become aggravated. I hopped up from my position on the loveseat. "This is supposed to be our night, the final dance of our youth, and I won't have it be a stupid sports theme when it could be something meaningful and worthy of reflection about our years here!"

Frank stifled laughter at my clichéd words with a few other boys, and I crossly sent glares their way. They stopped instantaneously.

James laughed, which caused my cheeks to flush in anger. "Okay, no quidditch theme, calm yourself, Lily." He placed his hands on my shoulders and pushed down, lowering me back onto the loveseat. I roughly shoved his hands off me.

"Hmm, I do like the idea of an outdoor type theme…" Remus muttered, rubbing his chin wisely. "We could do something along those lines."

"Yes, I suppose…" I added before Macy, who had been quiet throughout the whole meeting, came into the conversation.

"Something with the stars?" She inserted unsurely, twiddling her thumbs. I eagerly began scribbling down on my parchment.

"Right, keep going."

"Okay," Jonathan started, rubbing his hands together. "Outdoors, a starry night, a romantic scene maybe?" He inquired, and I looked up.

"Romantic? Hmm…yes, that could work…Think of something romantic to complete it." I asked, and everyone went into thought.

"Flowers?" Amy tried again.

"No, no that's far too simple."

"Rain?"

"How would that be possible? No."

"Hearts?"

"Ahh, too overdone." My hand twitched in annoyance. We were so close, I could feel it, we just needed a final twist on it to make it a perfect theme…

"Instead of something romantic," James started, looking at me, "Why don't we think of some_place _romantic?" I stared back at him blankly before he smirked. "You, out of all people Lily, should know where I'm going with this. What's the city of love?"

And then, it hit me.

"Paris!" I shouted happily. "The theme can be, _A starry night in Paris_! Oh, it'll be great! Imagine that! Paris, the city of light_! _A rendezvous in _La Ville-Lumière! _It's so…so…"

"Cliché?" A fifth year boy scoffed as he sniggered with his friends.

A girl rolled her eyes. "Maybe it is, but it's perfect. Good job, Lily and James." She finished firmly, offering us smiles. I grinned back.

"Thanks. Well, does anyone oblige to that theme?" When no one (except for the aggravating fifth year and his friend, whom everyone else booed until they shut up) said anything, I smiled. "Good."

"Well, sorry to interrupt this, Lily, but we've really got to get going – quidditch warm-ups start in fifteen minutes." James said, running a hand through his hair. I shrugged.

"Well, that's a shame…go on, though. I fancy the idea of a Gryffindor party tonight, so you'd better win!" I said, smirking broadly. I then added quickly to the Hufflepuffs in the room, "No offense."

Once all the respective quidditch players were gone, I cracked my knuckles. "Alright, onto the next matter of business. We have exactly a month and a half to set up arrangements and teams for decorations, food, music, supplies, and chaperones. Who wants to be in charge of what?" After an hour and a half of negotiating, we had our teams set up for each of the following tasks.

A few things surprised me during that meeting. One, I learned I do not really care for fifth year boys. Two, I discovered just how much effort I was going to have to put into this dance to make it live up the expectations I had set myself. And three, I noticed that Macy and Remus did not talk once during the whole hour.

Soon after I had dismissed everyone (and Macy had successfully avoided me trying to corner her after the meeting), I was pulling a sweatshirt over my head and following Violet up to the top row of the quidditch stands.

"…Should be a great game, with James filling in for Justin as seeker, and Rob taking his place as a chaser…" I wasn't really listening to Violet ramble on all that much as I slid into one of the rows and sat on the hard, wooden bench.

My eyes scanned the crowd for Macy, as I expected to find her sitting with Remus. However, when I spotted the sandy-haired boy, I saw Justin, his arms bandaged, on his right, and Peter on his left. No Macy. My eyes continued to scan the crowds until I found her sitting with Marissa, a frown present on her usually sweet face. I quirked an eyebrow and looked at Violet, who was still rambling on about the quidditch game and Sirius' fantastic new strategy plans. Man, if she thought she was being discrete about her and Sirius' relationship, she was sadly mistaken – we could all see it. And by we, I mean her closest friends and the other Marauders, of course.

"Hey, can you tell me why Macy's been so upset lately?"

Violet blinked as I interrupted her, but soon she recovered and shrugged. "I dunno, it's not really my place to tell you."

"Oh."

She eyed the fallen expression on my face and sighed. "Okay, but only because I want you guys to patch things up between each other."

I nodded. "Go on."

Violet flipped a lock of dark hair over her shoulder and faced forward. "She and Remus did it."

My eyes nearly fell out of my head as the bulged open, and my jaw fell a few feet. "What?"

"You know," She started, after rolling her eyes at my childish antics, "When a boy and girl love each other very much, they like to partake in a thing called _sexual intercourse. _The boy takes his – " I hit her shoulder in disgust, and she just laughed.

"Violet, this is serious. Did they really?"

"Yep." She said, popping the 'p' in the word.

"I thought they were both waiting until marriage?"

"Yeah, that's what they thought too." Violet said, crossing her arms over her chest. "But, one night I guess they were feeling it after a date, and well, you know." She coughed awkwardly. Oh, so now you choose to be shy about the subject?

"But that doesn't explain why she's been so upset lately." I mused, running a hand through my hair. I stopped midway through. Gosh, I was around James too much… "Was she ready for it?"

"Her? Oh yeah. She's totally in love with him, and wanted to." She said, training her eyes on the quidditch pitch as the teams started to come out of their respective locker rooms. The crowd cheered.

"Then what's the problem?"

"I don't think he was." When I just raised an eyebrow at her, she sighed. "In the morning, she woke up, and he was gone."

"Gone?"

"Gone." She repeated, and I stared dumbly at her. That's why she had been so upset that one morning a few days ago, and that's why she and Remus weren't talking to each other…

Suddenly, the fight made sense to me. She was mad at me for not appreciating James, because she was suffering in her own relationship. She wanted me to see what I had that was so precious, rather then see it go to waste like her and Remus. Suddenly, I felt like the worst friend in the world, and felt the need to run over to her and give her one big hug.

So that's exactly what I did.

I climbed over people, stepping on the wooden seats, until I was in Macy's row, directly in front of her. She looked startled. "Lily, wha-?"

I jumped onto her, latching my arms around her neck, and squeezed her so hard I thought I was going to suffocate her. "I'm so, so, so sorry Macy, I had no idea, I was being a selfish prat and thinking about myself rather than reading between the lines like I should have been. I never knew any of that stuff was going on, I'm so sorry I wasn't there when you needed me the most." I spat out hurriedly into her shoulder, hugging her tightly. I took a breath and finished with a pathetic, "Forgive me?"

When she hugged me back tightly and shoved her head into my neck, I smiled and giggled in glee. "Yay!"

Macy backed away and looked me dead in the eyes with her pale blue ones. "I'm sorry too, Lily. Friends?"

"Friends!" I cheered happily before grabbing her hand and pulling her up. "Mind if I steal her for the game, Marissa?"

The girl laughed and nodded. I gave her an appreciative look before pulling her back up to where Violet and I had been sitting. The brunette girl laughed. "That was fast."

"And it should be forgotten fastly, too." Macy said, shrugging her shoulders and winking at me.

"Fastly isn't a word." I pointed out to her, an impish grin on my face. She swatted my arm.

"Moment ruiner."

And then, the game had started. Gryffindor's team was so amazing, that even if James hadn't caught the snitch (which he had, by the way), red and gold still would have won with an overwhelming amount of points. Two hours later, I found myself sipping a butterbeer on the couch in the Gryffindor common room with Violet on my right and Sirius on my left. I was cock-blocking. Not that I bloody cared anyway, I just thought it was comical.

"So Lily, what kind of drunk are you?" James asked, peering at me from just over the brim of his glasses. I laughed awkwardly and rubbed the back of my neck.

"Well, I'm…the clingy girl drunk." I sighed, ashamed with myself, as my friends around me sniggered. "I get all over romantic with guys, and the only thing I want to do is snog."

"Oh, we know Lily darling." Sirius piped up, taking another shot of firewhiskey. I groaned and turned to him.

"What about you?"

"I get really angry." Sirius said thoughtfully. "One time I came to a family party drunk and punched Bellatrix so hard she got a bloody nose. Brilliant time." He recalled the memory fondly, and we all laughed. "And you, 'Lette?"

"I think I'll pass."

Jonathan rolled his eyes and threw an arm around Marissa. "Come on, can't be that bad."

"You'd be surprised…" I said smartly, giving Violet a knowing look. She laughed.

"Come on! You've got to answer, everyone else did!" Sirius said, crossing his arms over his chest. James nodded before taking a swig from his butterbeer.

"Padfoot's right on this one, Violet." He acknowledged, and she sighed into her glass of alcoholic beverage.

"Fine…" Her face rose in color as she said, very quickly, "Igetattractedtowomen."

Remus raised an eyebrow at her. "Come again?"

"Uhm," She coughed, scratching her nose ashamedly, "When I'm drunk, I kind of turn a little…bi-sexual." When she saw the blank looks of everyone at the table, her face turned even redder. "What?"

"Bloody hell." Sirius breathed out, a twisted smirk on his face. He then leaned forward to stare at her from across my legs. "And who might I ask is your partner in these, _tender _feelings?"

"My best friend, of course." She answered simply, as if he were already supposed to know the answer.

All eyes immediately turned towards me, and I cried out in an exasperated voice, "I told you I get clingy and snog-happy when I'm drunk! It's not my fault!"

James sighed and raised his glass. "Now I'm really starting to enjoy this party." The males in our circle laughed while the females shifted around uncomfortably. "To being drunk!" James cheered happily, and we all clinked our glasses in contentment. Soon after we had all taken our first sips, James put his drink down and wiped his mouth.

"Well, I'd better go find Jillian. She ran off somewhere with Rob as soon as the party started, said something about leaving her broom in the locker rooms and she needed him to come help her get it, since he had the key." He shrugged and stood up. "See you lot later, then."'

I choked on my mouthful of butterbeer as he spoke. With tears in my eyes from the burning sensation in my throat, I noisily swallowed the beverage and gasped for air. "James, wait!"

However, he was already out of the portrait hole when I spoke. I scrambled up and darted after him.

Once I appeared on the other end of the enterance, I heard James stopping outside a door at the end of the hallway as he heard voices coming from inside it.

No, please, don't happen, please let it be some other mangled and passionate couple, any other couple, Peter and a house elf for god sake, just not –

"Rob? J-Jillian?"

Shit.

"James!" I heard her cry quickly as she shifted her body around a bit. I quickly darted behind a corner and peeked my head around it, just to see James staring blankly with a solemn face into the room.

"What's going on here?" He asked in a scarily calm voice. I saw a pale, manicured hand come out from inside of the classroom and reach for his shoulder, but he shrunk back form it.

"It's not what it looks like." Jillian said desperately. My mouth dropped as I watched the scene unfold before my eyes.

"Bloody hell, it better not be. You have three seconds to explain." James' face contorted into one that did not even remotely look like his own, and I saw the frustration and anger buried deep in the creases of his forehead as he tried to comprehend what was happening.

"Three." James counted out loud. No movement.

"Two." Still, neither of them spoke, and my eyes felt glued to the scene unfolding in front of me.

"One." Silence.

I heard the sounds of James' footsteps run up the stairs leading to the Heads' Dorms, and then I heard Jillian drop to the ground in sobs.

Bitch. She did not have a right to cry.

I forgot about my desire of not wanting to be seen and booked it after him. Jillian squeaked out a "Lily!" as I passed her, but I ignored it, and sprinted up the staircase after muttering the password.

"James? James!" I called while running up the staircase. I needed him to know that I was here, and that everything was going to be okay –

"You knew." As I reached the archway leading to the room, I saw James standing in the middle of it, his chest heaving up and down in madness, glowering at me.

I tried to open my mouth, but no words came out.

"You knew." He repeated, his voice strained. "Didn't you?"

"I…James, I – I didn't, erm…I'm sorry." I finally said, sighing as I took a step towards him. He took one back.

"James, Rob is an idiot. He does stupid things without thinking them through." I tried to comfort him with words, no matter how empty I knew they were. "He did the same thing to me, broke up with me for no reason – "

"Merlin, Lily, how _stupid _are you?" He shouted, his hands tugging at the ends of his hair in irritation. I felt frozen in my spot.

"What?"

"He was cheating on you, too!"

I felt as if a shard of ice had just plunged into my stomach, cutting clean through it and leaving my body with a cold, dull feeling.

Again, I asked, "What?"

"No one ever told you." He said surprisingly calmly while sitting down on the couch. He looked tired, all of a sudden. I moved my body and sat on the opposite end that he was on.

"Last year. We all knew, but no one wanted to say anything, because we didn't want to hurt you." He sighed and ruffled his hair. I stared at him in shock. "Rob broke up with you because he was cheating on you." He finished, looking up at me with still eyes. "With Jillian." He finished, and I felt as though the shard was just thrust deeper inside myself.

A moment of silence passed, and it wasn't until a tear dropped onto my bare thigh did I notice that I was tearing up.

"I loved him. Did I ever tell you that?" I laughed bitterly, water lining my eyes. James watched me carefully for a few moments. "I gave him everything. My first kiss. My first love. My first…" I stopped myself and choked on a sob as my throat burned intensely. "Oh god, I-I…I gave him," I stopped myself to hiccup as I restrained from tears.

"Do you still…love him?" James asked, his eyes boring holes into the side of my head. And yet, I refused to look at him.

"No. But the past c-can still hurt, J-James." I swallowed noisily and tried to calm myself by taking a few breaths. "I thought he broke up with me for a noble reason, like he didn't want to be in a serious relationship until he was sure that I was the one, or he didn't want to get in too deep in case he got injured in the war. He always wanted to be an auror you know…" And suddenly, all the feelings of sadness and suppressed hoping and longing came pouring out, and I whispered words of utter nonsense to James, and my breathing became quicker, and my vision blurred, and I rambled on for what seemed like forever. "And here I was, finding him snogging Jillian in an empty classroom, actually feeling _sorry _for you while I thought _aren't I a bloody lucky girl, I've never experienced cheating before…"_

I shook my head and smiled sarcastically. "Well, look how that turned out, yeah? A year later, and it hurts more than I could've imagined."

I shook my head numbly. This all seemed so surreal.

"Lily, I know." Just as I was about to spit out how insensitive he had been on the whole subject, telling me right after he found out about Jillian, just in spite, his face hardened, and I became still.

"Don't you even _dare_ tell me that I was insensitive in telling you this. No one had told you for a _year, _Evans. That's not my fault. Would you rather have been oblivious for _another _year before someone finally told you that your boyfriend was a lying cheat?" He spat out coldly. My insides burned as his words stung me, and I couldn't help but nod in shock at his harshness as more tears pushed at the back of my eyes.

My heart throbbed erotically in my chest as the world seemed to collapse around me. It wasn't even the information of Rob that was bothering me all too much – it was the fact that, in every aspect, James was right.

My best friends didn't even bother to tell me. Or anyone else in the school, for that matter. Oh Merlin, I must look like such an _idiot. _

"You know what else?" James continued. I stared at him dumbly. "I actually thought about giving up on you this year. I'd had enough of heartbreak for a lifetime because of you, Lily, and now I discover my substitute for my foolish affection for you has only done more damage." Silence lapped over us for a few minutes before he sighed. "You're not the only one who feels like an idiot."

"James…" I croaked out, finally finding my voice through the complete exhaustion and awfulness swirling around me. His eyes flickered up towards me, and I watched them for a few moments before I began to crawl over to him. He watched me as I inched closer until I climbed into his lap.

"I won't try anything – I swear." I said, quoting his words from January. It seemed so long ago.

I wrapped my arms around his neck and pressed the back of his head so it rested against my shoulder. His arms leisurely wound around my back and rested on the small of it. We sat there, hugging, for a long while. We seemed to fit perfectly against each other, and I couldn't help but inhale his perfect scent while he rubbed soothing circles on my back. I kissed the side of his forehead in comfort a few times, and he kissed the skin of my shoulder a few times, too. It seemed to fit. I felt…accomplished. I felt as though I had just found the missing piece to a puzzle, and now, I could finally complete it – but I wasn't ready to just yet. I hadn't even noticed the tears on my face drying. Time went by unknowingly. It seemed to have halted.

I began to grow tired, and my eyes grew heavy as their lids began to droop. All the energy really was sucked out of me. James felt my arms slacken and my body de-tense, along with hearing a yawn escape my lips.

"Come on, princess." He shifted my position on him so his arms gripped under my armpits and my thighs, and suddenly, he was lifting me bridal style into the air and walking up to my dorm room.

We walked in silence, him effortlessly carrying me up the staircase as I admired the way the dimly lit candles of the hallway gave his perfectly sculpted face a mysteriously faultless, luminous glow.

We reached my bedroom, and he brought me over to the queen bed that rested in the middle of it. He quietly laid me down on it, and I moved under the covers once the warmth of him left me. He sighed and looked down at me.

"I'm sorry, Lily."

"I'm sorry too, James."

Our eyes locked. He then began to walk to the door.

"Wait," I cried. I had no idea what I was doing, or what I was planning to say. My voice seemed to speak of its own accord.

James turned around and eyed me curiously.

My cheeks reddened as I stuttered out my response. "S-Stay with me?" I moved slightly to the right so there was an open spot next to me. His gaze lingered on it. I decided to keep explaining.

"The last thing I want right now is to be alone. I'm sure you feel the same."

James watched me for a few moments before clearing his voice and speaking in an uncertain voice, "You're sure?"

"As sure as I'll ever be, James." The words seemed enough to convince him.

James stayed glued in his spot before he began to undo his buckle. He stopped after a moment, his face gazing up to mine and reddening. "I, erm…sleep in boxers."

"As long as you're not in your birthday suit, I don't mind." I smiled sheepishly up at him, and he coyly rubbed the back of his head while grinning shyly. He continued to undo his belt buckle, allowing his jeans to drop to the floor. He pulled his grey tee-shirt over his head and shuffled over to me, clad in nothing but a pair of navy blue, plaid boxers and a pair of short, white socks.

I tried not to admire the way his stomach muscles were outlined by the slight glow radiating from the moon outside, or the way they tensed and de-tensed with every step he took. I tried not to admire the way his back curved perfectly against the black silhouette of the night, or the way his hair stood up messily, albeit so handsomely, in the room. I tried not to admire the way his hazel eyes still seemed locked to mine, or the way his lips formed a timid smile as he approached me. I tried not to admire these things. But the beauty of trying is not always succeeding – and in this case, I did not. Not even in the slightest.

He crawled into bed next to me, and I instantly moved towards him for heat. My hands, which were softly clenched, moved to his warm chest and rested there, as my body snuggled closer to his own. He threw an arm around my waist, and I allowed it to rest there as I softly removed his glasses from his face and placed them on the nightstand next to me.

"Good night, Lily." He whispered huskily. The sound caused chills to crawl up my back.

"Good night, James." I breathed out, closing my eyes and breathing in the intoxicating aroma of cologne and quidditch. I moved closer to him and pressed my head next to his own while my hands curled up on his chest. It was so nice to touch him again, to feel him again. He was so warm…so pleasant…

I drifted off into slumber, a smile on my face.

* * *

"Lily."

"Nghh."

"Lily Evans."

"Hit the snooze button…"

"I don't come with a snooze button…"

I reached my hand out and felt around for a snooze button, but no – this alarm clock was warm and flesh-y.

"Wait." I opened my eyes and saw the curious eyes of James Potter staring amusedly into mine.

I screamed.

"Shh!" He covered my mouth with his hand while I continued to scream. "Lily!" He hissed, and I finally stopped screaming when I heard a voice.

"Lily? Is that you up there? You left in a rush last night and didn't come back, so I assumed you'd be in here. Mind if I come up?"

Violet.

Shit.

James' eyes widened, and he opened his mouth to speak. This time I shoved my hand in front of his and said back, in my most trying-to-act-normal voice I could muster up, called, "Yeah, give me a minute!"

"No way, I'm coming up now!" She yelled back. I then heard footsteps coming up the stairs.

"James!" I growled, turning over to him. "Hide!"

"Uhm, what?" He asked scratching his head. It was then that I noticed he was only wearing the boxers he went to sleep in last night. My mind froze and my cheeks turned a brilliant shade of red before I regained myself, got up, and threw his pants and shirt at him.

"Get dressed!" I whisper-yelled at him while running over to my closet. I threw open the door and shoved a few boxes out of the way so he could fit in it, and as I turned around, I noticed he had slipped on his shirt, and was just pulling up his jeans now.

"Faster, James!" I groaned in aggravation.

He stopped pulling his jeans up so he could turn to me and smirk.

I slapped my forehead in disbelief.

"I hope you're decent, Lily!" Violet called from outside the door. I 'eep!'-ed and shoved James into the closet before jumping into my bed just as she opened the door. James scrambled to shut the door to the closet shut just as she walked in, and I tried to look nonchalant as I smiled up at her.

"Hi Vi."

"Good morning, sunshine."

"Same to you." I replied casually. She looked around the room once, and sighed.

"Breakfast starts in fifteen minutes. Hope you make it before all the bacon's gone." She said while walking out of the room.

"Thanks. Bye, Violet!"

She turned back to smirk at me. "You're welcome. Bye Lily!" She then turned to the closet. "Bye James!"

My jaw dropped as James screamed out an angry _"How?" _from inside the closet. She laughed and skipped out of my room, and I fell back onto my bed, face first.

"Kill me now."

"It's not all that bad, Lily." James tried to soothe me as he finished pulling on his jeans. I groaned.

"How could this be any worse?"

"You could have to break up with your cheating girlfriend." He added, laughing weakly. He tried to make it sound like a joke, but I knew better.

"That is worse." I replied lamely, not knowing what else to say. He just sighed, and I didn't need to look to know that he was running a hand through his hair.

"Come on, Lily. Go take a shower. I'll meet you down in the Great Hall for breakfast, alright?" I didn't move, and he laughed. "I'll take that as a yes."

He left my room, and not soon after he did, I forced myself to get up and take a two minute shower. I then pushed my wet hair up into a messy bun, with a few strands here and there to frame my face, and slipped into a pair of white denim shorts and a pretty, lacy, pale yellow top. I then put on a pair of flip flops and walked down to the Great Hall, where James was eagerly awaiting my arrival.

He sat in his chair, drinking a cup of black coffee and reading the morning edition of _The Daily Prophet. _He suddenly looked like a husband, or maybe a dad, too, and my mind wandered to the idealistic image of waking up to James every morning as his wife.

I shook these thoughts from my mind and walked over to him. Taking a seat directly across from him, I reached for a blueberry muffin and took a bite out of it.

"Morning, Lily dearest."

"Morning, James dearest." I repeated, giggling at the stupidity of our greetings. He gave me a weak grin, and I saw his eyes wander over to where Jillian was sitting with a few other girls, her head bent over her plate and a sullen expression on her face. I sighed.

"Just go do it, get it done with."

"Don't sound too eager for me to end it with her, Lily. I mean, I know you're hopelessly in love with me and all, but you should really try to make it not as obvious." He pointed out carelessly, waving his fork at me jokingly. I laughed along with him, but only because he didn't understand the complete truth and reality behind the statement he had just released.

"Oh, shush up." I grumbled, taking another bite of my muffin. He sighed and pushed his chair back standing up, and stretching his arms over his head.

"Well, here goes nothing, I s'pose."

"Luck." I wished him, and he nodded in gratitude. I watched him as he strode over to Jillian, whispered something to her, and continued to watch them as she refused to get up. I tried to listen in to the conversation as much as I could without seeming obvious.

"No. I refuse to believe we're over." She said snootily as her friends exchanged worried glances around her. I slid down closer to them on the bench, seeing as there were now only a few people separating me from their conversation.

James said something back that I didn't quite catch, and Jillian shook her head. "No. You're not breaking up with me. I don't know what you saw, but it wasn't real, and –"

"_Jillian!_" James finally shouted. The entire hall quieted.

Well, not so much trouble eavesdropping now…

"We are _over."_ He drawled out, putting particular emphasis on the last word. "I'm so sick of you and your petty needs, stupid antics, and ridiculous requests. You're suffocating me, Jillian, and you _bloody hell_ _cheated_ on me with a mate of mine!" A murmur of astonishment traveled throughout the hall as Jillian's face changed from a pale china doll pink to a tomato red.

"We're finished." He screamed at her before storming out of the great hall. Jillian, who had all eyes on her, stood up and ran in the opposite direction of the one in which James was going, tears falling from her eyes.

I don't want to be one of those bitchy girls that say_, "You deserved it."_

But boy, did she deserve it.

I couldn't just sit in my seat right now – I was too antsy to do so. So, I followed after James. I pushed my bench back and stood up, retracing James' steps so that I followed him onto the quidditch pitch.

It was completely empty except for the two of us, and I watched as the breeze ruffled through his plain white tee shirt and dark hair. He looked so attractive…

Ahh, okay, focus Lily. He's in emotional distress right now. What would you do if this were one of your girlfriends? You'd comfort them after their breakup, and hell, that was what you were going to do with him, too.

"James?" I called over to him. He was fuming; it was obvious, because he didn't respond to my call. I tried again. "James?" And yet, I was greeted again with the same silence.

I took a deep breath and started to walk over to him, taking slow, careful steps until I was right behind him. Leisurely, I stretched my hand out until it rested on his shoulder, and he cringed at the contact.

"Are you okay?"

"Tell me something, Lily." James turned around and roughly grabbed my hips with his hands, pulling me closer to him. I inhaled sharply at the contact. Whether it was because I was frightened or excited, I knew not.

"Do you feel anything for me?" He asked, his warm breath tickling my nose. His intoxicating smell of cologne swirled around me, and I felt my body groan in pleasure as my arms slowly found their way around his neck.

"W-What, James, what's going on, what're you - ?" He shushed me and brought his lips closer to mine.

"Do you feel this, Lily?" He pressed his lips against mine, and warmth enveloped me instantaneously. It was the best feeling in the world. He pulled away.

"I mean, do you really feel this, Lily?" He asked, taking a thumb under my chin and lifting it up so our lips met again. He pulled away again all too soon. I felt like I couldn't breathe. It was so overwhelming.

"Or this?" He pressed his lips onto mine again, and this time, he took the time to move his lips against mine in the most affectionate way possible. I did the same, and soon, my entire body felt flushed against his. He pulled away once more.

"Because I feel something, Lily. Damn, I feel something great, and something real, and bloody hell, does it scare me." He whispered against my mouth. My hands found their way to his hair and ran through his dark tufts, pulling at them, feelings them.

He kissed me once more, this time letting his lips linger longer than necessary, and backed up again. "Tell me Lily, right now, what you feel."

I opened my mouth to speak, but no words came. I tried so desperately to find a word, a sentence, any sentence, even if it were clumsy and hastily put together, to explain what I felt, but I couldn't.

His eyes glowed with passion. "Tell me you feel nothing right now, Lily." He asked as his lips moved once more to my own, and this time, he took no restraint in holding back. He pulled my body tight against his and moved his lips so warmly, I wondered if he was really just an excellent kisser, or these were completely my feelings for him being transferred in human contact.

We stopped after a few moments, and he whispered out breathlessly, "I bet you can't."

"James…" I tried, but I couldn't figure out what to say. I was with him. This was happening. We were here, we were kissing, and this was real. And yet, something didn't feel right.

"What…about Jillian?" I asked, and his mouth hungrily found mine again.

"It's the past." He said as his teeth grazed my bottom lip. I wanted so much to moan in delight at the wonderful sensation I had come to known as snogging James Potter, but I resisted the urge to and turned my head to the side so our lips parted.

"You broke up with her nearly five minutes ago."

"Yes, you're point?" He asked, his lips finding the skin on my neck to keep him occupied for the time being. I melted into him again, and the inside of my body felt like it as on fire.

Then, I thought of the hurt. The words, _"just friends" _coming from his mouth. His relationship with Jillian. Him choosing her over me. Him ignoring me, and knowing that he was killing me inside. The icy feeling came back, and soon, I was feeling more cold than heat.

The numbness caused by the icy sensation made me realize something, and I felt myself start to crumble.

"I'm a rebound." I stated sadly. James head snapped up from where it was working at my neck.

"What? No!" He proclaimed loudly, putting me at arms length so he could look me in the eyes. "Don't think that! I like you Lily, I've always liked you – "

"Maybe that's true." I whispered quietly, taking a step further away from him. "But at one point, you liked me, _and _you liked Jillian. And right now, you can't tell me you're completely over her, even if your feelings for me are stronger."

He stayed silent, blinking emotionlessly at me. "I – but, we, and –" He whispered out incoherent words, and I shook my head bitterly.

"No, James. This is the truth. No other answer, no way around it. I'm a rebound." I stated simply. The numbness in my body was overtaking me wholly now – I couldn't feel anything at this point.

"Lily…" He tried again, reaching for my hair to tuck it behind my ears. I sidestepped out of the way.

"Now's not the time." I said. He watched me. "You need to move on from her. And when you do…" My green eyes locked onto his hazel ones, and I lowered my voice so that I spoke it in just a whisper, "I'll be waiting."

"But, Lily…" He struggled to find other words, and I just silenced him.

"It's okay." I sighed softly, looking up at him. He stared back at me.

There were no more words that were left unspoken – no expressions left unwritten. No story left untold. Everything was caught up. And now, all we could do was wait for the epilogue…whatever it turned out to be.

I turned away sharply from him, muttering an excuse about having to go meet Alice somewhere, before I broke into a sprint towards the castle. When I was younger, I used to think I could outrun all my problems – I was faster than time, or monsters, or even petunia with scissors in her hand. I simply had to put one foot in front of the other, and soon enough, the problem would be gone.

How I longed for that again.

_**a/n wow. Lot of emotion in this chapter…**_

_**I know right now a lot of you are swearing like truck drives because you are angry that I can't just let them be together and be content and happy, but, well, that's not how this plots works. :D**_

_**Thank you for the continued support through this story! I'm so overwhelmed with all of these great, dedicated readers and reviewers, that I don't know how to thank you! I guess I will promise to just try to upload faster, because I own that much to you guys for being so great to me(:**_

_**Musical inspiration – the whole time, I was listening to the cover of the acoustin cong "umbrella" by rhianna. Once it's a slower pace, and you really look at the lyrics, it applies to james and lily in a sad way. Here's the link: **_

_**www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch/?v=sc1hhAKDiQw&feature=related**_

_**Also, I'm coming out witha new one-shot soon. Be sure to check it out!(:**_

_**Yours truly,**_

_**LOL for lots of love,**_

_**Roxalicous. xoxo**_


	15. Chapter 15

"You're the most obnoxious person in human existence, James Potter!"

I stomped over and pointed a finger at him accusingly, panting because I had just ran from the Great Hall to where he and his fellow Marauders were sitting in the middle of the Quidditch pitch. He stood up and, after brushing himself off, crossed his arms over his chest and raised an eyebrow.

"Good afternoon to you as well, Lily. Can I help you?" He said coolly, flicking a piece of hair out of his eyes.

I just glared.

"You put stink pellets in my bathroom before we went to class this morning, didn't you?" I fumed while Sirius chortled into his hand and Peter smiled cheekily. Remus was trying to hide a smirk.

"Maybe. But only because you replaced my shampoo with honey – how do you think I felt, pouring that onto my head this morning? I had to rinse my hair and shampoo it twice to get it all out!" He responded, his eyes narrowing at me.

I huffed and glared at him, speaking in a harsh voice, "You filthy git."

"You little prat." He retorted.

We stayed in that spot, glaring at each other until, simultaneously, we both burst into laughter. I lightly elbowed him in the side, and he chuckled and threw an arm around my shoulder. I smiled up at him – he was too much fun to be around.

"Here they go again, acting all lovey-dovey…disgusting." Sirius mocked throwing up and threw himself on the ground. Remus just rolled his eyes.

"I can't believe you're still pranking each other. Aren't you two sick of it yet?" He asked curiously, leaning back on his palms. I shook my head, as did James.

"No, mate," He said, giving my shoulder a squeeze, "We're only just getting started." Sirius made a gagging noise from his position on the ground while I just rolled my eyes at his corniness and shoved James' arm off me.

"Come on, we'd better get to Potions, then." I said, beginning to walk back towards the castle. James waved in departure to his friends and ran to catch up with me, slowing and falling in step with me.

"I can't believe how warm it's getting, and it's only April second." James commented while shoving his hands in his trouser pockets.

I shrugged and blew my fringe out of my eyes. "I'm not complaining – I love spring. It's my favorite season. Everything's coming back to life again. I love it. It's so happy."

James nodded. "I'll have to agree with you on that. When I think of spring I think of Qudditch. Amazing sport. I'm quite fond of it, if you didn't know." He stated in a sarcastic, matter-of-factly voice. I giggled.

"I had no idea…" I quirked an eyebrow at him, and he offered a silly smile. We walked comfortably to Slughorn's class, chatting mindlessly, and simply enjoying each other's company. Once we were seated (next to each other, of course), I let my mind wander over the past few weeks.

Jillian backed off of James once he broke up with her. Every time she'd see either of us in the hallway, she'd turn the other way and scamper off like the rodent she was. She

and Rob were also open about their relationship now – not that anyone cared. The school's primary current gossip was about, you guessed it: James and I.

Everyday I was badgered with questions; "Are you going out?" "Are you in a thing?" "Are you together?" "Are you shagging?" Every response was no, of course.

Almost every time I'd negatively answer, the next question asked would be, "Why?" Which was a question even I couldn't answer.

I looked at James from the corner of my eyes and studied him for a second – why hadn't he asked me out yet? He spends seven years doing it on a daily basis, and when the time it comes and actually matters, he gets cold feet. What was that about?

"Okay, class," Slughorn clapped his hands together, snapping me out of my daze. "The Potions final assessment is tomorrow – I hope you've all been studying efficiently." James and I shared a look, both of us grinning stupidly. We both knew that the tutoring sessions we had been sharing for the past few weeks were the reason we were as close as we were now.

"Last session tonight, Lily." James whispered when Slughorn turned to write on the board.

I smiled sadly and sighed. "Yeah, it went by so fast."

"I reckon all the drama between us made it seem that way, yeah?" He chuckled, "Glad it's all over now, though."

I couldn't help but laugh a little – really, it was true. Too true, in fact.

He faced forward again, and I peered at him from under my eyelashes. It really was over. Everything was ending. The thought made me a little upset. Everything that had brought James and I closer – Hogwarts, classes, the prank war, tutoring – was coming to an end. The cycle we had come to know was coming to a close.

When he felt my gaze on him, he turned his head and offered me a grin, a grin in which I weakly returned. Maybe closure wasn't a bad thing. He turned away again, and I sat up straighter in my desk. Maybe closure was exactly what I needed – after all, the ending of one story wasn't completely bad. All it meant was that we could now begin the plot of a new story.

A happy thought played in my mind – this new story. What would it be like? Adventure? Mystery? Romance? My thoughts wandered to James, and I smiled. One thing I could be sure of; this time, this story would star two people: me, and James. I would make sure of that.

* * *

I smiled and walked with a sort of skip in my step to lunch, a happy grin playing on my lips – I felt as light as air, as bright as the sun, as high as the moon, and nothing could bring me down.

"Um, Lily?" a hand gripped my forearm, and I turned around, my smile fading into a peeved frown – Rob stood behind me, coyly scratching his chin, an uneasy grin on his face.

He laughed nervously and let go of my arm, and I proceeded to harshly cross them over my chest, a scowl evident on my face. His laugh turned into an awkward cough, and I rolled my eyes – he was pathetic.

"S-So, I would just like to say that I'm, um, sorry." He tugged at his tie anxiously, and I raised an eyebrow. He continued. "Jillian told me that James, ahh, told you about why we uh…broke up."

My gaze hardened and I laughed while saying sarcastically, "Did she now? Well that's super!"

"Now Lily, I can understand why you're mad – "

My eyes snapped up towards him and narrowed as I dangerously closed off the distance between us. "Do you understand? Do you _really?" _I asked, rage bubbling up inside of me like boiling water on a stove.

He gulped and said "Lily, you have to understand, my feelings had changed for you at that point, I wasn't going to drag myself in a relationship that I wasn't happy in – "

"You mean to tell me you were happy until we had _sex, _Rob?" A few people in the hallway turned to look at us, but I didn't care that I was causing a scene.

Rob looked around and, in a state of panic, whispered, "Lily, not here – "

"No!" I screamed, and he just glared at me and roughly grabbed my arm again. Not gonna lie, it kind of hurt.

"Lily, shut up." He muttered quietly as he glowered. "Let's talk about this someplace else, people are starting to watch…"

I pulled my arm out of his grasp and clutched it – his fingers left a ring of red on my skin, and I stared at it in shock. The bruise further enraged me.

"You were unfaithful the whole time, and then when you got what you wanted out of me, you broke up with me. You didn't end it because you weren't happy. You ended it because you were bored." I shook my head at him and spat out, "You disgust me."

He stood there, his mouth slightly agape, at a loss for words, and I could have kept going – I could have insulted him until his reputation was damaged beyond repair. I could have made him feel stupid and worthless and pathetic like the prat he was. I could have made him feel like nothing, _be_ nothing for the last few months at Hogwarts. But I didn't.

I simply turned my back to him and walked away.

* * *

"Sirius?" Said person turned around and, upon seeing Violet's face, smiled.

"Hi, 'Lette." She giggled and blinked innocently up at him, a smile on her face.

"Do you know what today is?" she asked, her fingers just barely brushing against his. He yearned to intertwine their hands, but knew he couldn't – they were in public, and their relationship was still clandestine. Sirius reflected on it; keeping it from everyone had been sort of fun. Sneaking around, hiding from the world – it was a secret that only they knew, and it had made it even more fun.

"Could it perhaps be our two month anniversary?" he asked suavely, and it was hard for her to cover up the silly smile growing on her face.

"Perhaps."

"And could I have, perhaps, gotten my flat mates to leave the dorm all to ourselves tonight for a romantic date, featuring a home-cooked meal?" Violet grinned, and began walking back towards the portrait hole of the Gryffindor common room.

"I would say that perhaps, tonight had potential. But only perhaps." She turned back around to wink over her shoulder. "Catch you later."

"Yeah," Sirius responded breathlessly while collapsing on the couch. "Later."

The portrait hole closed behind her, and Sirius groaned, slamming his eyes shut.

"Something wrong, Padfoot?" He cracked one eye open and spotted Remus descending the staircase to the boys' dorms, a book clutched under his arm. Sirius sighed.

"Moony, I have a dilemma."

"And I'm assuming that's your way to invite me into giving you advice?" When Sirius stayed silent, his eyes still shut, Remus sighed and sat down in the loveseat across from him.

"What's going on, then?"

"There's this…girl." Sirius worded carefully. Remus raised an eyebrow at him. "And I…well, I really like her. And I don't ever like girls, really – mostly it's just physical attraction. But this girl…wow. She's…she's something special, Moony." Sirius smiled goofily, and Remus couldn't help but snort into his hand upon seeing his friend so love stricken.

"So that's why you asked me to sleep in Jonathan's dorm tonight…" Remus mused. Sirius nodded.

"I think tonight might be the night, mate." Sirius sighed again. "The thing is, I've already, you know…" he flailed his arms awkwardly to avoid having to use the word, "…_been _with her. But it was a long time ago, and I really, really want this time, for it to be special…"

Remus smiled at the boy. "Sirius, you're really maturing, you know that?"

"It had to happen sometime." Came a third voice from the portrait hole, and the two boys' heads snapped to see James strolling into the common room, an apple in his hand, as he took a seat next to Sirius on the couch. Remus laughed, and Sirius smacked the back of his head while James just smiled cheekily at him.

"So, what're we talking about? You and Violet?" James asked, taking a bite out of his apple, and Sirius' jaw dropped.

"What? Y-You know?"

"You're my best mate." James pointed out, raising an eyebrow at him. "Did you think I was stupid?"

"Anyway," Remus said, ignoring James smirking proudly and Sirius pouting, "Let's get back to talking about this…_situation." _He ruffled his sandy hair and continued. "There's more to sex than just the sex, Padfoot. You have to have an emotional bond with them in order for it to actually mean something." He looked out the window next to him and murmured, "If you two really like each other, and want to feel that emotional vulnerability, that emotional strength, then it shouldn't matter – it'll be special regardless."

James and Sirius shared a look, and both of them smirked and leaned in closer to Remus.

"Remus Lupin, you sly dog, you." James winked, and Remus quirked an eyebrow at him.

"Huh?"

"You and Macy did it, didn't you?" When Remus opened his mouth to protest, James held up a hand in prevention.

"Don't even try to deny this one, Moony." The boy slumped back into the loveseat, shoulders slouched.

"How could you have not told us?" Sirius proclaimed, throwing his hands in the air. "You're a man now! This calls for a celebration! Come on, let's ditch DADA next block and get a round of butterbeers at the Three Broomsticks, and then – "

"No!" Remus shouted, jumping out of his seat. James and Sirius shrunk back a bit. "This isn't supposed to be celebrated! I, I did a terrible thing, and…" Remus sat back down and said in a defeated voice, "If I could take it back, I would."

"Moony…" James said hesitantly, "Is…is that why you and Macy haven't been talking lately?"

"Yeah." He breathed, and Sirius decided it was his turn to speak up.

"We can't help you out unless you tell us what's up." Remus began fidgeting with his hands, looking out the window again.

"She…she told me she loved me." He said very quietly, almost in a whisper. Sirius smiled and stood up to clamp a hand on his back.

"That's great, isn't it?" When Remus said nothing, he said, "You do love her back, don't you?"

"Of course I do." He muttered sadly, "And that's exactly why I've been ignoring her. She's in love with a werewolf." Remus shook his head. "She deserves better."

"You can't do that, mate." James pointed out, throwing an arm on over the side of the couch. "It's not right."

"I know that…but if I ignore her, maybe she'll move on, and meet someone better."

James and Sirius stayed silent, the weight of the situation thrusting heavily upon their shoulders. A thickness so dense drifted in the air, and finally, after a few moments of silence, James stood up.

"You're not Remus Lupin." Sirius and Remus' necks both snapped up to look at James, who was glaring at the boy in annoyance.

"Pardon?"

"There would be no Marauders without him. He created this group. He's the reason we're all friends. Him being a werewolf brought us together, and look how close we are now!" James exclaimed. "And look at his grades and his scholarship offers – you suppose they care that he's a werewolf? Sure, some of them do, but not all of them – but would he even know that if he hadn't applied for all those? No. He tried, and he got what you wanted.

"Look at how much of a role-model he is – how many lower classmen look up to him, and how many teachers respect him, and prefects, and other students…would he ever dare give them any reason to doubt him? No. And what about all the people that care about him, including Macy? The Remus Lupin I know wouldn't just give up without a fight – he would figure out a way to make it work. He would try."

James shrugged and shoved his hands in his pockets. "You're not Remus Lupin."

Remus blinked at him expressionlessly, and Sirius, following James' lead, stood up too. "Prongs is right, you know. You're not Moony. Or at least, not the Moony I know."

Silence.

James and Sirius stared piercingly at Remus, whose face was as blank as a piece of paper.

They waited for a reaction. A reflex. Anything. But he showed no emotion, no response to their words at all.

Finally, after a few minutes, Remus stood up. "You're right."

Sirius silently cheered, and James just raised an eyebrow. "How am I right?"

"Remus Lupin doesn't just, just run away from his problems! Remus Lupin deals with them!" he said, his voice gaining confidence and strength.

"That's right!" James provoked loudly.

"Remus Lupin doesn't just give up without a fight!"

"Hell no!"

"Remus Lupin faces everything head-on, no matter how hard it is!"

"And that, sir, is what she said." Remus ignored Sirius' comment and James' laughter and smiled broadly.

"Remus Lupin is the bravest, smartest seventh year in Hogwarts!"

James looked a little taken back. "Well, I wouldn't go _that _far…"

"He's also the best looking Gryffindor out there!"

"Hey…" Sirius growled, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Remus Lupin can do anything! Anything he sets his mind too! Remus Lupin can fix things up with Macy, because…because he can! Dammit," He turned towards James and Sirius, "I _am _Remus Lupin! And I can – erm…"

Remus stopped as Sirius and James jumped on him, hugging him. "Good to have you back, Moony!" James praised, Sirius affectionately rubbing his head against Remus' shoulder. Remus just stood there awkwardly.

"Um, can you two get off me?" When neither moved, he squeaked, "Please?"

"Our little Remmie-poo is all grown up, Prongsie!" Sirius mocked sobbed, and James bitter sweetly nodded.

"I know, where did the years go?" Remus' face reddened while the two boys clung to him, faking tears, as a few other people in the common room looked upon the scene with great interest.

"Okay, okay I get it, I shouldn't doubt myself, you guys can stop now." And yet, the two refused to move, and Remus' embarrassment increased. "Seriously? People are staring."

"My middle name's not Lee!" Sirius yelled, and James burst out into laughter. Remus, no matter how embarrassed he was, felt so completely and absolutely happy – his two best mates had made his life at Hogwarts worthwhile, and he wouldn't change anything about the past seven years – not one memory.

* * *

"Okay, what about him?" Macy asked as a sixth year Slytherin passed us. I shrugged.

"Eh…I'd give him a six. Usually an eight, but seeing as he's a Slytherin, his value drops considerably." I stated nonchalantly while Macy nodded in agreement.

"I see the reasoning behind that. He is cute, though, with that blonde hair and smile. Too bulky though, I like them to be a little leaner." I hummed in response and then pointed to Amos Diggory.

"Oh, definitely a solid nine and a half. He's a looker. Violet's crazy for dropping him for Sirius – though I can't blame her. Sirius really is good looking, and he's fun to be around. Tough choice." She added as an afterthought, and I just laughed and shook my head.

"See you're talking about me, then." We turned around and saw Violet and Alice sitting down beside us, peeling off their knee-highs to dip them in the lake like we had.

I smiled up at them. "Actually, how you dropped Amos. But hey! How'd the muggle studies quiz go?"

"I think I did decently on it." Alice shrugged and ran a hand through her chin-length hair, smiling contently. "Though I know I definitely got at least one question wrong – Lily, what's the use of a telephone?"

"Muggles use it to communicate long-distance."

"Wait, I thought that was a television?" Violet asked, scratching the back of her neck. I shook my head.

"No, that's the box that plays pictures to entertain muggles."

"I thought that was a mocrowave?" Alice cried urgently. I burst into laughter while Violet laid down on her back, her feet now barely brushing over the surface of the lake.

"Welp, I failed that quiz, then."

"So did I." Alice sighed, and I rolled my eyes, a smile on my lips – how they could perform defensive spells, jinxes, and hexes, and not know the difference between a microwave and a telephone baffled me.

"So, are you doing the rate game?" Violet asked, and Macy nodded.

"Yep, and since you brought it up, um…him, over there. The hufflepuff on his way to dinner."

"I say a three. His nose is very distracting." Alice and I chuckled while Macy's eyebrow shot up.

"That's mean…"

"I'm being honest!" She said defensively while getting up. Alice scoffed.

"Sorry his nose isn't sized to your liking and perfectly symmetrical like Sirius' is…" I muttered, and Violet's eyes widened.

"W-What did you say?"

"I'm your best friend, Vi. I know you guys are together, I'm not stupid." I laughed at her shocked expression while Macy and Alice just shook their heads.

"Anyway," Macy began, standing up, "The kid's got the right idea, heading to the great hall – I'm starving." I followed suit and stood, putting my socks into my book bag with my shoes and walking barefoot to the castle.

"I can't believe it's already April – just think. Next week, we're going home for Easter vacation, and when we get back, it's more classes, NEWTs, and then graduation." Alice said, shaking her head. "I can't believe how close we are to the end."

"It's gone by so fast…" Macy murmured sadly, looking up at the already darkening night sky and sighing.

"Hey," I said, noting all their sad faces. "Don't be upset…we get to start our lives after this. Our _real _lives, I mean." I began whistling, and Violet nudged me with her elbow.

"Our lives began the day we started Hogwarts, Lils. Now, we're just moving to the next part of them." She sighed and threaded her fingers through a lock of her long, dark hair. "I don't know if I'm ready for it yet, though."

"Girls, girls. Cut the emotional crap. You're all just sad because you're going to be leaving _me." _We turned around to face Sirius, a smirk on his face as he threw both of his arms around Violet and I, Jonathan next to him. I rolled my eyes and ducked out of his grip so his arm just rested across Violet's shoulders.

"You nailed it, dead on." Macy giggled behind her hand, and Sirius feigned hurt.

"Harsh, Macy. When did you become so sassy?"

"And when did you become so modest?" She countered. We all laughed, including Sirius, who gave her a warm smile and a "Touché."

"Anyway, I was just coming to tell Violet that I found her book in my room if she wants to get it now?" Sirius gestured towards the castle, and Violet nodded.

"Right, the book…I'd better get that. Catch you guys later!" She gave us a wink and departed with him, his arm sliding off her shoulder to put his hands in his pockets. I inwardly chuckled – they thought they were being discrete.

Alice and Macy continued walking, as I fell back so I could walk with Jonathan.

"Hey, Jonathan!" I greeted, and he smirked at me.

"Hey."

"How're things going with Marissa?" I asked casually, and he shrugged.

"I like her, she likes me. Simple enough, not much to it." He laughed, and I nodded, longing for my love life to be that easy.

"Sounds perfect."

"It is." He replied happily while we walked through the entrance of the school. "What about you and James?"

I sighed. "I don't even know what's going on between us."

"You like him, right?"

No, I bloody well lo –

"…Yeah. I do." I said.

"Hm…well, he does have a rather nice butt, yeah?" He grinned down stupidly at me, and my mouth dropped open.

"W-What? How did you hear about that? Did Violet tell you?"

"She told me nothing. I merely saw you staring." He tutted at me, and I shoved his shoulder roughly.

"You're a jerk."

"Who is stunningly handsome and has a better butt than James Potter? Thank you!" I turned to grin up at him, and saw his face fall when his eyes rested on something as we turned the corner. My gaze followed his until I saw what he was looking at.

"You – filthy – twat!" James bellowed while punching Rob in the face. The latter stumbled backward upon contact, and as he attempted to take a swing at James in retaliation, the boy grabbed his hand and prevented the action, taking his own fist and knocking it into the boy's stomach.

Rob hunched over as the wind was knocked out of him, and James kicked him in the shin so he fell on the ground. "I swear, if you _ever _touch her _again,_ I'll – "

"H-Hey! You can have her! She's not worth all this – " Rob sputtered out as he wiped a drop of blood dripping from the corner of his mouth. James' eyes began to glow with a fiery rage as he lunged for him.

"What do you mean, _'not worth all this?' _Lily's worth everything! I can't believe she ever went out with a nancy like you!"

"James! James, w-what are you doing?" I found the corners of my eyes begin to tear up, and James turned to me, a scratch on his face and sweat covering his forehead.

"Not now." He growled while turning back to Rob, who had whipped out his wand. A flash of white appeared as he muttered a spell, and soon after, James' white button down had a streak of blood seeping through it. James clutched at his torso, and again, I felt an overwhelming sense of helplessness as James jumped on Rob.

"You – will – never – lay – a – hand – on – her – again!" James yelled, punching him with every word. Rob's nose started to bleed, and by this time, the two had drawn quite a crowd of unruly students cheering them on.

"James, stop it!" I cried, running behind him and gripping his arms. Yet, he refused to oblige as Rob tried to scramble out from under him, clutching his bleeding nose. "James, please!"

Panting, James jumped off of Rob and wiped the sweat off his forehead with the sleeve of his button down. "I loathe you, Rob, and I promise, if I _ever _hear that you've hurt Lily again…" Rob, upon being freed, clambered up and ran into the crowd, and everyone cheered as James glared after him. The crowd began to dispatch, and finally, he faced me.

"Lily, are you okay?" He asked, his voice laced with worry. "I heard a few Ravenclaws talking about how they saw Rob and you fighting and how he grabbed you rather roughly – "

"James, I'm fine!" I responded quickly. "But you're not! You're bleeding!" I grabbed his hand and began pulling him towards the Heads' dorms. "I'll fix you up myself, if we bring you to Madam Pomfrey she'll be sure to figure out it was from a fight, and you'll get suspended." I, still a bit teary eyed, pulled him up the corridors, and when we had gotten to the portrait hole, nearly yelled the password as I rushed him up the stairs.

"Don't worry Lily, it's nothing, really – " But I had already pushed him down on the couch and ran into the bathroom to grab a wet towel and a few bandages.

"Lily!" He yelled when I came back, and I allowed myself to glare at him for a second through my tears.

"What?"

"Are…you crying?" He asked nervously, and I weakly shook my head.

"I'm just, just…" I racked my brain for a reasonable answer, but couldn't think of one. Dammit, why did my brain choose now to be so unreasonably slow and senseless?

"Lily…?"

"It was really scary seeing you like that!" I finally burst out, and he looked a little taken aback. "You looked…like a mad man. I'd never seen you that angry before. And to know it was my fault, I-I just, u-um…"

"No need to get emotional, Lily." James said with a small grin, and I sniffled and shook my head.

"Yeah…yeah, you're right. Pull yourself together." I muttered while James undid his tie and peeled his shirt off. My eyes quickly snapped to his chest.

Ignoring the gaping gash in it, it was still very, _very_ toned and very, _very_ attractive…

I felt my face heat up as my head quickly snapped away – what's wrong with me, focusing on his looks when he's bleeding?

I grabbed the wet towel, and kneeling in front of the couch, pressed it to his wound. He winced in pain. "Sorry."

"Why can't I just take a potion again?" He asked while I gently wiped the towel around on his stomach and lower chest, wiping the blood away. The cut wasn't as bad as I thought it'd be; turns out, Rob's spell had been quite weak. I inwardly let out a breath of relief – it made the situation seem less serious.

"Do you want to get in trouble?" I asked, a bit aggravated while I placed the towel down to pick up the bandage. He raised his arms above his head, and I wrapped it around his torso, protecting the wound.

"Well, no…" He inhaled sharply as I patted it down on the cut and finished wrapping it.

"Then shush up." I wiped my hands on the last clean portion of the towel, standing up and turning away from him to cross my arms over my body and stare out the window.

A moment of silence passed before James softly said, "Thank you. You didn't have to, you know. I could have done it myself…"

"Don't mention it." I continued to stare out the window, and overwhelming amount of emotions pressing down on my shoulders. I could hear him hesitantly shift in his seat before getting up and walking over to me.

"Lily, can I ask you a question?"

I hummed in response, and he grabbed my hand and pulled me to the windowsill so we could both sit down on the ledge of it. Our legs dangled off of it, and I had to remind myself to look away when I realized he was just in his black trousers, his muscular and toned physique exposed to the world. When I felt myself blushing, I swallowed loudly, and James just ruffled his hair.

"Lily, you, uh…you know I like you." I nodded slowly, feeling a strange tingling sensation in my belly as he stated the fact, even though I already knew it. For some reason, it sounded even more surreal and wonderful when he voiced it.

"And, I think it's safe to say you like me too?" He asked apprehensively, and a small smile graced my lips as my gaze settled on the fireplace at the other end of the room.

"Yes."

"So…" His hand went to his hair again, and I heard him ask uncertainly, "Where does that leave us?"

Silence.

"I don't know." I said truthfully, and I finally looked up at him. My green eyes pierced into his hazel ones, and I thought that maybe as long as I were staring into his eyes, him staring back into mine, my life might be a little easier. Just maybe.

"At…at that party in December. You know, the one where you asked me to the ball? Well, I went to the library, and thought for a really long time…" I said, choosing my words carefully, "And when I came out of there, I decided I was going to ditch Jonathan to go with you."

I could see the surprise in James' face as his mouth formed the shape of an 'O'.

"Yeah." I laughed a little awkwardly, "But then when I came into the common room to tell you, you were swapping spit with _her," _I said through gritted teeth, "And, well, the rest is history. We go to the ball, we dance, I find out I have feelings for you. We go on vacation, you give me a wonderful present," I reached down the front of my shirt to grab the locket hanging around my neck, and he just stared at it, "We come back, we're as close as ever, we kiss, and then…" I trailed off, and after a moment, shook my head.

"The next day, I find out you're dating _her, _and I've never felt so stupid and sad in my life. We go on ignoring each other for a while, and when we start talking again, it's fighting, then sweet-talking, then you're breaking up with her and we're cuddling and kissing and…" my eyes rolled up to stare at the ceiling while I let out a sigh. "And now here we are, and I'm still as confused as I was in January."

"Then why don't you let me explain." James said, and I just nodded.

"Lily, you've been rejecting me for seven years – how was I supposed to know that when I asked you to the ball, you were going to actually accept it? You have to understand where I was coming from…I've always liked you, but I have liked other girls too. Plus, it's hard to not date other girls when the one you're after won't give you a second glance." He pointed out, and I couldn't help but agree a bit with him.

"And the ball…that was the most fun I had had at a dance, like, _ever." _He smiled fondly, recalling the memory, and I couldn't help but chuckle. "That was the first time you had shown any remote interest in me, and I had seen a new side of you I never saw – a funny, sweet, beautiful girl who wanted to let loose and have fun. You were no longer untouchable – you were perfectly reachable.

"The present I gave you for Christmas I had gotten a long time ago, but as soon as the dance was over, I literally ran up to my dorm and charmed it so it played the song we danced to. I didn't want to forget that moment ever, but what would be the point if _you_ had forgotten it?" He shook his head. "That night seemed unreal. The song that your locket played reminded me that it wasn't just a dream…it was something so much better." My heart swelled at the words, and I watched as he rubbed the back of his neck coyly.

"Then, when we kissed…" He let out a low whistle and turned to me. "It all happened so fast, but I never wanted it to end. When Remus talked about how he felt when he was with Macy, you know, the butterflies, the want to be her everything, to feel her in his arms…I thought he was being corny and overdramatic, but then I knew he wasn't crazy for feeling like that when I was there, with you."

"You weren't untouchable at all anymore – you were there, right there for me to have, to be with." He blinked a few times. "I was so scared, Lily. After we kissed, I opened my eyes, expecting to wake up, but I didn't – it was real, it was actually happening. And I didn't know what to do. I saw your eyes, and I saw so many emotions running through them – hope, longing, affection, and for _me_…" His voice sounded distant and faraway, and I hung onto every word he said.

"I was scared Lily. Really, really scared. I'd been chasing you for so long, I never expected that I'd ever actually get you…the thought of it was overwhelming. What if I lost you? Or we broke up? Or you found someone better? It was too much to handle." His hands inched towards mine, and I felt his fingers brush against mine. "So I ran.

"But now," He began, smiling at me. "I'm ready. And I have one last question."

He raised a hand to tuck a lock of hair behind my ear, and I nuzzled my head against it as he leaned closer to me.

"Lily Evans, do you want to give us another shot?" He smiled, and I stared blankly at him.

This was it. The moment I had been waiting for. I searched his eyes, so full of hope, and laughed to myself – he had asked me out so many times before, but it had never made my heart soar, or my stomach do somersaults, or my brain go so fuzzy in complete bewilderment like it was now.

When I continued to stay silent, he nervously added as an afterthought, "If you want, that is…"

I snapped back into focus and looked up at him, grinning hugely and sincerely. " Yes. I've already made up my mind. And you?"

James laughed and cupped my cheek. "Lily, I made up my mind seven years ago."

And then, he leaned in and kissed me.

It was not a kiss that was used for revenge. Nor was it a kiss that took place in a pub for a birthday. And it was most certainly not a kiss used as a rebound.

It was just a kiss.

Just a simple, perfect, delightful, amazing, wonderful, brilliant kiss.

_**A/N WAHOO! *cheering and dancing happily***_

_**YOU DON'T KNOW HOW LONG I'VE BEEN WANTING TO WRITE THIS CHAPTER. I just don't have all this free-time anymore :/ So, I apologize for the long wait, but I think it's worth it, yeah?(;**_

_**THIS IS NOT THE END. We still have a few more chapters to go. However, I don't think this story will have more than twenty chapters, and I'm unsure if I'll include an epilogue or not…**_

_**Also, if you haven't yet, check out my one-shot, "The Twelve Hours James Did Not Ask Out Lily".**_

**_AND, I started a blog! If you're interested in reading it, look for the link on my profile! :D_**

_**Anyway! I would like to thank my new beta, Mimigem634. She's been very helpful and patient with me :D I would also like to thank every single one of you for reading and reviewing on this story, it's come such a long way, and I'm so grateful. You've made me become such a better writer and person in general, and I'm not lying when I've said that. You've taught me many things, and I want to tell you all how much I love and appreciate you all.**_

_**MUSICAL INSPIRATION: My boots (acoustic version) – LIGHTS. I love this song, so mellow and calming and beautiful…**_

_**Arms – Christina Perri. Great song. I thought it captured Lily's feelings very well, and I kind of imagined them kissing to this, right when the chorus ends about a minute and a half into the song.**_

_**Thank you all again, for everything.**_

_**Sincerely, **_

_**Roxalicous. Xoxo.**_


	16. Chapter 16

"Finished!" I said with an accomplished smile as I tied a ribbon on the last Easter basket for one of my various cousins. "This one's for Vicky, Mum, so that's seven."

"Great! Seven for seven." She threw a skinny arm over my shoulder and turned to me. "Good job, dearie."

I laughed and thanked her. Petunia, upon seeing the motherly-daughter scene, pretended to throw up in her mouth while my dad just rolled his eyes.

"Petunia, would you like a hug from your Pops?"

"No."

We all chuckled as she shuddered at the idea of family displayed affection. My father came next to my mother and kissed her on the cheek before pressing his lips to my forehead. "I'm so glad you decided to come home for Easter vacation after all, Lily. It wouldn't be the same without the whole family."

"Me too." My dad patted my head (what am I, a dog?) before the doorbell rang.

"Mind getting that, Tuney?" My mother asked as she picked up the last two baskets and started heading to the kitchen. When Petunia scoffed and retreated to her room, my mother gave me a pleading look.

"Yeah yeah, I got you." I walked through the family room and unlocked the door, peeking my head outside. A chilly, spring breeze blew by, ruffling my fiery hair, and I rubbed my bare forearms.

"Hello?" I said, scanning the area outside. No one.

I stepped out onto the porch. "Um, hello?" No response.

Suddenly, the door flew shut, and as I whipped my head around, surprised, someone grabbed my arm and started pulling me towards the side of my house.

"W-What are you -" I started before a pair of warm lips pressed onto mine. When I breathed in a scent of cologne and picked up on the familiar taste of cool mint, I smiled into the kiss and placed my hands on the stranger's chest.

After a few moments, I pulled back and giggled. "Hi there."

"Hey." James said, bringing up his hand to thread his fingers through my hair. "I missed you."

"I saw you two days ago."

"My point."

I laughed and pecked him lightly on the cheek. "I missed you too. Now, not that I don't enjoy this, but…why are you here?"

James chuckled and gently pushed me against the back of my house. "'Cause I wanted to see you." And with that, he leaned down again, closing off the space between us to kiss me. I forgot the fact that just a moment ago I had been cold, for now a pool of heat was forming in my stomach, and my whole body felt warm as he pressed his chest against mine. His hands skillfully ran up and down my sides, causing a shiver to escape my mouth and my lips to quiver in a scary kind of pleasure.

"Lily? Where'd you go?" I tore my lips of off James' and whipped my head to the right, where I could see the light from an open door shining on the grass of the ground. I turned back to him, but he merely just shook his head and smiled.

"I'll come by later. Go inside; tell your dad not to worry. Plus, you're cold. I could feel you shivering." I blushed from embarrassment. He didn't need to know the real reason I was shivering.

"Okay. I'll see you soon. No surprise visits anymore, either." He whined, and I laughed while ruffling his hair with my hand.

"Now go home, enjoy the Potter-clan-plus-Sirius Easter dinner you were telling me all about, okay?" He gave me a goofy smile while rubbing the back of his neck.

"Aw, fine…I try to do something romantic and get sent away for it...bye, Lil." He leaned it to kiss me one more time, this time his lips lingering a little longer then necessary. It was tender, sweet, and just as I closed my eyes and leaned into it, I felt a rush of wind, a sense of warmth leaving me, and he was gone.

"There you are Lily, I was…why are your eyes closed?" I snapped my eyes open and un-puckered my lips, only to see my father with his arms crossed in front of me, his eyebrows raised expectantly at me.

I awkwardly laughed and muttered under my breath, "Wouldn't you like to know…"

"What was that?"

"Nothing." I grinned and walked over to him, slinging an arm around his waist. "I'm just happy to be here, is all."

He softened a little and followed my gesture, placing one of his arms over my shoulders. "I am too, Lilykins." He murmured quietly, and together we walked into the homey, idealistic scene of a family sitting down at their dining room table, china and formal placemats set up, ready to enjoy a happy, Easter dinner.

* * *

I hoisted myself up onto the chair and pressed a hand against the wall as I attempted to tape the banner across the archway of the door. On the opposite side of me, Remus, also on a chair, did the same, though he struggled fairly less than I did.

"Want some help?"

"No." I said before giving a frustrated groan as I failed, once again, to stick the banner.

"Why didn't we just use magic again?" Remus pondered out loud as I angrily tucked a piece of hair behind my ear.

"Because!" I huffed. "Not every little chore has to be performed with magic! That's just something called laziness."

I heard someone let out a low whistle, and my eyes looked towards the sound – Sirius was standing at the bottom of my chair, shaking his head. "Taking out your sexual frustration with Prongs on Moony, I see?"

I rolled my eyes and motioned for him to stand on the chair. "Make yourself useful if you're going to tease me, then."

He smirked and pulled himself onto the chair, taking the banner from me and pasting it in the designated spot with ease.

Cheeky bastard.

"You're short, Lily darling."

"Not as short as Macy."

Remus' ears perked up at the mention of her name.

"Ah, that's true. She's tiny. Just like Remus' masculinity." Remus shot the boy a glare before his eyes flickered to the other side of the room – Macy was sitting at a table with a sixth-year Hufflepuff, checking off a list with her quill.

"I want to talk to her, I really do. I don't know what to say though. So quit it." He added as Sirius laughed into his hand. Said boy hopped of my chair and offered me a hand, in which I gladly took so he could gently bring me to the floor.

"Trying to steal my girlfriend, Padfoot?" The familiar sound of the Prefects' enterance opening sounded through the room, and James strolled in, his hands stuffed in his pockets and a smirk on his face.

"Girlfriend? That's going to take some getting used to." Remus quipped, hopping off his own chair and shooting his mate a smile.

Sirius, still holding my hand, spun me around and brought me close to him. "Obviously Prongs. It's my sole duty in life to make you miserable."

James punched his shoulder with a smile, and I wriggled my way out of Sirius' grasp, laughing. They were so cute.

"Come on, let's get to supper." James grabbed my hand and started to lead me towards the portrait hole, and I waved to them over my shoulder as he escorted me through it.

"The dance looks like it's coming along nicely." James pointed out once he had begun to walk down the hall, and I nodded.

"Yep," I said, making a popping sound on the last syllable, "two weeks until it's done."

"Two months until we graduate." James stated, and I felt myself deflate a little.

"Two and a half…" I added pathetically. He raised an eyebrow at me.

"If you want to be technical, yeah…what's up, Lily?"

"That's so close! Only two and a half months of Hogwarts until we have to move on and become adults and – "

He leaned down, and in one swooping motion, kissed the side of my head, silencing me. "Calm down. It's not that close. A lot can happen in two months. Like that musical you keep telling me about, North-side city or something? Doesn't that all happen in one week?"

I chuckled, partially because of his ignorance, and partially because it was sweet he was trying to remember one of my muggle things.

"First, it's Westside Story, and second, it all happens in one weekend. But I appreciate the effort." He just shrugged in response, our hands swinging back and forth absentmindedly between us.

Passing students looked on at us, and I entertained myself by watching their reactions – some smiled, some cooed, some girls shot me jealous glares while some boys gave him death stares. It was very amusing. We were the prime subject of the school's gossip.

"James! It's about time, eh?" Justin Weiss smacked his newly healed hand on James' back, a grin on his boyish face. James just chuckled.

"Get outta here." The seeker laughed and bid good bye, and together, James and I continued our way into the dining hall.

"So you know as Heads, it's our duty to host the dance, right?" I asked casually as we took our seats at the end of the Gryffindor table.

He nodded, letting go of my hand to grab a plate for himself and I ("There you go, Lil." He put the plate down in front of me, and as I smiled and thanked him, two sixth years boys snickered. James just glared at them and returned to our conversation.). "Yeah, we have to introduce the band and announce the king and queen, right?"

"Right." I poured myself some juice just as Alice and Frank sat across from us at the table.

"How're the newly weds?" Alice teased, Frank smirking as well. I rolled my eyes and took a bite of my food.

"Awful. I can't stand her. Gets on my nerves, she does." James jabbed a thumb in my direction.

"And don't even get me _started _on him. Bloody git, and an annoying one at that." I retorted, though I couldn't help but allow a smile to play on my lips – even with the label, the newness of a relationship, and the unfamiliarity of being affection to each other without drama, we hadn't lost site of who we were before. Which is what I loved about us.

_Us. _How good it felt to say that. Us, us, us, us. James and I. Me and James. James and Lily. Lily and James.

Do you not hear how amazing those words sound?

Even thinking about _us _gave me that warm, bubbling sensation in my belly I had begun to know all too well. And we hadn't even been dating for more than two weeks.

I watched James from the corner of my eye as he conversed with Frank and Alice. Two weeks. Such a short amount of time…maybe I shouldn't be getting ahead of myself with all this lovey-dovey stuff.

But when I saw him, and thought of everything we went through and how we had survived it all…I could only welcome the future with open arms. We had made it this far. And we could make it farther.

"Oh, buggar. I forgot my wand in my dorm. I'll be right back." James pushed the bench back and stood up, and he offered me one more smile before walking out of the great hall.

* * *

"I don't even know what to do anymore!" Macy cried while forcing her hand into a fist. "He won't even look at me! Dammit, Violet, I don't deserve this."

"That's right." Violet said, mindlessly looking out the window as Macy continued her rant.

"I mean, how do you and Sirius do it?"

"Huh?" Violet snapped her attention to Macy, who was giving her a curious look.

"Have you two ever gotten into a fight?"

Violet shifted uncomfortably on her bed, folding her legs under her.

"Well…I don't really know how to explain this, but Sirius and I have a, really, completely different relationship from you and Remus. You guys are very sweet and serious and intense and we're just…" Her voice faded a little bit as she looked outside again, "…looking for a good time."

"So you guys never fight, because you have nothing to fight about?" Macy questioned, and Violet nodded unsurely.

"I-I guess." She mumbled, running a hand through her dark, long hair.

The two sat in silence for a few moments, both in thought, though about completely different things.

"I'm so done with Remus, Vi." Macy started, breaking the quiet.

"What?"

"I'm done with him. He's not worth being all upset over all the time."

"No, Macy you can't!" Violet didn't know why or how, but somehow, she had stood up, fingers clutched tightly against the bed posts.

"What?" Macy's eyebrow gave a slight twitch in confusion. "You're supposed to agree with me! Didn't you just say I didn't deserve this?"

"Well, yes but…wait, no." Violet sat on Macy's bed, voice wavering a bit out of uncertainty.

"You and Remus deserve each other completely…there's no other couple out there that is more perfect than you are." Violet folded her hands in her lap and quietly said, "Don't give up just because you had one…disagreement. If you guys didn't have at least one in your relationship, then I'd say something's wrong. But…you just, you need to work this out with him, because two people who are so right for each other can't just…stop…"

Macy searched Violet's eyes and saw conflict – inner contradiction, self-doubt, and she finally asked, "Vi…did something happen with you and Sirius?"

* * *

James whistled contentedly as he strode down the hall, hands in his pockets, pure happiness shining in his eyes. He could only think to himself, _how could my life get any better than this?_

"Potter." The messy-haired boy stopped in his tracks and slowly turned around, eyebrow raising as he saw no other than Severus Snape standing behind him, his same grimy, vindictive look painted on his face, eyes black and glistening spitefully.

"Well that's not a very polite greeting, Snape." James casually stated, turning around completely and crossing his arms over his chest. "Can I help you with something?"

And before James had time to react, Snape had pulled out his wand and cast a full body-binding curse on him. James felt his arms glue themselves to his sides and his legs stick together. He gave him a bored stare. "Well that certainly wasn't very polite either."

"Look who has finally gotten better at magical attack." Snape gloated with a sarcastic chuckle, and James just rolled his eyes.

"I don't have my wand with me, you dim-witted prat." Snape's face reddened a bit, but he quickly shook the feeling off and stuffed his wand back in his trouser pockets.

"I need to talk to you, man to man." Snape said in a tone completely different from the one he had used only a moment ago. James inwardly groaned – the last thing he wanted to do was have a talk with Snape. He looked left and right and up and down the hallway – there was no getting out of this one.

"Go on." James sighed, and Snape stood up straight, sauntering over to James until he was just a few inches away from his face.

"You hurt her, and I swear, over my life, I will kill you."

Confusion flickered in James' eyes and, surprised, he asked, "What?"

"Lily." Snape said embarrassedly, his face reddening. He looked away, and James could only watch him in awe.

This was certainly not what he had expected.

"I don't know why, but she…she really, really likes you. She's happy." He said pathetically, eyes focused on the ground. "I can see it in the way she looks at you, and the way she smiles at you, and…" Snape swallowed noisily and looked up again, eyes locking with James'.

"And if you ever take that away from her, I will curse you into oblivion. Do not doubt me on that, Potter." He finished strongly. James watched him, his expression softening a bit.

"Listen, Snive - …Snape." James fixed before continuing. "I may not like you, not in the least bit. But I respect you coming to me about this and doing it in a civilized manor…kind of." He muttered, annoyed as he remember the curse that was still on him. "And, well, I know how you feel about her." Snape's eyes snapped up to his, panic evident on his face.

"Don't worry, I won't tell her. But when you put so much time and energy into hating someone, you start to notice things about them, and you're rather obvious." Snape visibly deflated a bit, showing his relief, and James continued.

"I promise, I'll never hurt her. I'll take good care of her, and I'll make sure she stays that happy, with me or without me. _And,_ I promise to keep your secret." Snape gave him a hard, judgmental stare for a long time, and James merely permitted him to, allowing him to see that he was being whole-heartedly honest.

"…Shake on it, then." Snape whipped his wand out and un-bound James. The hazel-eyed boy stuck his hand out right away.

"I promise, Severus." James said confidently, giving him a firm look. Snape, after a moment of staring at the hand, stuck his own out.

"Thank you…James." It felt weird to hear him say his first name without utter loathing, James decided, but as he shook Snape's hand and they turned to walk in opposite directions, he couldn't help but have a newfound admiration and reverence for the Slytherin.

* * *

"Lily, can I see you for a moment?" Just as the bell rang, McGonagall spoke to me, and I turned towards James, who was next to me.

"Don't wait up, okay?" I said, throwing the strap of my bag over my shoulder. "I'll meet up with you after quidditch practice."

"Alright." He looked at McGonagall, who was turned around and busy talking to a scrawny boy, before quickly pecking my check and turning to walk out the door. I giggled as I watched his retreating form, and when I turned around to face the professor, she was giving me an all-knowing smile.

"He's been following you like a love-sick puppy since first year," She said softly, much unlike her normal, stern McGonagall voice, "I was wondering when you'd come around."

I found myself heat up as I said embarrassedly, "P-Professor…?"

She merely winked and coughed, her strict demeanor coming back. "What NEWTs do you plan on taking?"

"All of them." I responded. "I'm not sure what I want to do yet, so I want to make sure that I keep all of my options open."

"Smart choice." Her eyes searched mine, and then she added in a low whisper, "Have you thought about becoming an auror?"

"An auror?" I repeated, and she merely nodded, taking a pair of reading glasses from the top of her desk and setting them on the bridge of her nose. She then reached into her desk and pulled out a small piece and gave it to me.

"_Remolded Maubry's_?" I said in a puzzled voice. The piece of paper was a flyer for a local theater on the outskirts of London. _'Always open and looking for services!' _It read in scripted letters on the bottom of the page. I raised an eyebrow at it.

Yep, McGonagall's finally lost it.

My eyes traced over the border of the flyer, a sort of fiery design, and the middle of it – centered was a beautiful bird, its wings extended to the full, as it flew gracefully. I looked back up at McGonagall. "Uhh…?"

"When you get back to your dorm, look at it more carefully, Ms. Evans." She said, standing up in her chair and brushing off her emerald robes. "And don't show this paper to anyone. You must keep it to yourself. Understood?"

"Yes, but I'm afraid I don't quite get what – " But before I had time to question McGonagall further, she was ushering me out of her room and shutting the door behind me.

I stood there, confused, before looking back down at the paper again. The letters, scripted so delicately on the bottom, looked oddly familiar – yet I couldn't place a finger on it.

"I know that handwriting." I muttered quietly, scratching my head. "I've seen it somewhere before…"

I didn't comprehend what had just happened. Why was McGonagall being so mysterious? And why – I tucked the piece of paper into my bag and began walking down the hallway, my eyebrows knit in confusion – did McGonagall give me this?

I spent the next two hours in the Gryffindor common room, a book in hand, blindly reading over the pages without really processing what the words. My mind was a million miles away – with the letter from McGonagall, a newfound puzzlement for what career path to take, and a rekindled stress for the NEWTs, I had no room in my mind left to focus on a stupid book. I angrily threw it aside.

Wait.

Shit, that was a Jane Austen book!

"No!" I cried, picking up the book off the ground and rubbing its spine delicately. "I didn't mean to, I'm sorry, I'll promise I'll never do it ag – "

"You never cease to amuse me."

My eyes cast over to the owner of the voice, and I saw James in dark jeans and a loose tee-shirt, his hair wet and shaggy from his shower. Wow, was my boyfriend sexy.

No, bad thoughts, Lily. Quit it.

"Don't get used to it. Shut up," I added while he gave me a cheeky grin and hopped onto the couch next to me.

"So what'd you do when I was gone?" He asked, running a hand through his dark, wet tresses and giving me a lopsided grin.

Can we just snog already?

My mind wandered back to my previous thoughts, and I sighed.

"Nothing, really." He gave me a quizzical look.

"Well, obviously _something_ if you're sighing like that." Damn, he knew me too well.

"It's nothing, really." I insisted, remembering McGonagall's words to keep it to myself. He gave me a cute pout and I just laughed. "Sulking will get you know where." I said while tutting.

He groaned and poked my leg. "Lily," He whined. I laughed to myself. I loved it when he got like this – all little-kid-like, with the poking and pouting and whining.

"I can't tell you." I responded while bookmarking my page and placing it on the table. My eyes shifted around the common room – on a Tuesday night, it was no wonder that no one was in here with us. Everyone was either at dinner right now, or off doing homework in the dorm. It was comfortably silent and warm, minus the crackling of the dim fire in front of us.

"Why not?" He asked, an eyebrow shooting up beneath his glasses. Did I mention how hot glasses looked on him?

Okay, I can't take it anymore.

I crawled over to him and pressed my lips onto his, feeling the oh-so-familiar tingling sensation in my stomach. He kissed me back for a moment before lightly pushing me of him.

"Don't try to distract me Lily, I'm not done pestering you yet!" He said in a low voice, shaking his head at me. Now it was my turn to groan.

"James, when a girl tries to start a snogging session with you, you don't shove her away." I pushed him back against the arm of the couch and leaned over again, my mouth meeting his while my hands moved to his hair, running my fingers through it. I felt him shiver beneath my touch, and I smiled to myself – I could break him so easily.

He turned his head to the side, and my lips moved to his neck. "No, I'm not done yet, I – " my tongue traced circles on his skin while I crawled on top of him, my legs on either side of him. I felt him tense up under me, and he stopped talking to swallow noisily and continue, "I still want to know why you're acting so…acting so…" When I slid my hands under his shirt and pressed them against his warm flesh, he made a small noise, and I grinned, realizing I had finally won him over.

"Oh, fuck this." He finally breathed, pushing me back so I was lying on the couch, only to lower himself on top of me and capture my mouth with his. I felt heat pool in my lower abdomen, and as our legs tangled, his chest pressing against mine and hands roaming the sides of my body unashamedly, I felt as if I were suffocating in everything I had come to know as James – his smell, his feel, his touch, the way his breaths came out low and shallow after we snogged, or the way his fingers left a trail of warmth everywhere they touched. Being with him was so different than being with Rob, or Jonathan, or those boys in the Three Broomsticks on my birthday. Being with James was like sitting out in the sun on a hot, summer day. Comfortable, warm, and just...natural.

That's the only way I could describe being with James. It felt so natural, so right.

"Did I hear you come down here, Prongs? You ran off as soon as practice ended that I didn't get to ask you about the strategy you were telling me ab – Bloody hell!"

My eyes quickly snapped open, only to see Sirius at the bottom of the staircase, mouth agape and hand twitching awkwardly. I quickly pushed James off me, causing him to fall backwards on the couch, while I wiped my mouth and tried to get the obvious red-color on my face to fade. James sat up straight, glasses askew before reaching a hand up to fix them.

"U-Uhm, hey, Sirius." I said uncomfortably, my voice cracking as I tried to regain my breath. James just sat there, face unreadable, as he grabbed a pillow and put it in his lap. I internally questioned the action. _Why would he need to…?_

I found myself beginning to heat up in realization, and just as it did, Sirius' face lit up in realization too – he burst into laughter, clutching his sides, while James just glared at him, cheeks pink.

"I…you…and Lily - and – " He bent over, hands on his knees, as he continued to hoot. "I'm – telling – everyone!" He said between laughs, and James' face screwed up in anger.

"You wouldn't." He growled just as Sirius regained his composure.

The boy just bowed at him. "Hey, what're best mates for? I've said it before, and I'll say it again:" He gave him a defiant smirk. "It's my sole duty in life to make you miserable." And with that, he ran back up the stairs, howling with laughter.

He turned back towards me, then to the staircase, then to me, and gave me a pleading look. "Go on." I said, and he gave me a grateful half-smile before bolting up and running after him, still holding the pillow in front of his crotch.

I closed my eyes for a second before bursting into a fit of giggles, deciding that I had been missing out on James for too long.

_**A/N is it weird that I really enjoyed writing that? O_o **_

_**Hello all who haven't given up on this story yet! I'm sorry that I haven't uploaded in so long, but I'm so busy with school and field hockey**_ _**extra-curricular activities that I barely have time for sleep anymore. I've had this chapter plotted out in my head for months now, and I'm glad I've finally gotten around to writing it!**_

_**Music inspiration – All that I am – Roxanne Emery. This song was in the latest episode of MTV's show Awkward, a show that I'm absolutely in love with! If you're not a fan of it already, I definitely recommend looking at it! **_

_**I also started a blog, titled "Silly, teenage girl." If you feel like checking it out, the link's on my profile.**_

_**There's only a few more chapters after this, so be ready for more updates more frequently! I'm debating an epilogue or not, so if you guys would be interested in one, leave a review saying so!**_

_**Also, after this, I have another story that I've been thinking about for a long time, and once this finishes, I'm going to get right on that. Once again, it will be a James/Lily multi-chapter story, romance/comedy, and will take place in their seventh year. Hope you guys can check it out when I get around to writing it!**_

_**Thank you so much for reading this and reviewing and favorite-ing and alerting. This has been one crazy, hectic time, and I loved going through it with you guys! Thank you for those who stuck with me from the beginning, those who just recently started reading my stuff, or those who are just reading them now – I appreciate you all and love you all for the overwhelming support you've given me.**_

_**Happy reading!**_

_**LOL for lots of love,**_

_**Roxalicous. xoxo**_


	17. Chapter 17

"Times up." Professor Slughorn called out to the class. I yawned and stretched my arms above my head before placing my quill down next to me and observing my work – not only did we have to create a potion from the book, but we also had a written composition assessment. I looked down at my bubbly cursive and traced my name, written in the top right corner of the page. This would be the last potions' essay I would have to write.

Nostalgia. And I haven't even left yet.

The class ended, and I pushed my chair back, collecting my things, and walked over to the door, where James' was waiting for me. I smiled up at him.

"Well?"

"I think I passed." He stated simply, throwing an arm around my shoulders. "All thanks to my amazing tutor."

I sighed dramatically and said, "Really, tutoring you was quite a drag. You're so daft." I stated simply. James mocked offense.

"Why, Lily Evans, I never…" And when I took that split second to look up at him and take my eyes off the crowded hallways, a sixth year Slytherin running back to the dungeons knocked my shoulder, and my book bag went falling to the ground, its containments spilling there.

James glared harshly after the sixth year, "Oi, that's my girlfriend you just knocked off!"

I lightly tugged at his arm, "It was just an accident." I laughed, shaking my head, finding the way he took things so serious comical. I crouched to pick up my belongings, James bending down next to me and helping, when he suddenly stopped.

"You're wearing it." I looked at him and raised my eyebrows.

"Pardon?"

And the look of complete joy on his face was contagious as he glanced at my chest. "The locket."

We stood up, my things back in my bag, though the glow on his face never left. "I don't understand," I said, confused. "I wear it almost every day."

"I know." He said softly again while reaching for the locket and gently grabbing it, rubbing it between his fingers. The way his knuckles barely grazed the flesh on my collarbone gave the skin there a warm tickle as he observed the piece of jewelry. "It just reminds me of the dance is all." After a moment, he added, "I'm a romantic bastard, aren't I?"

"Sometimes I wonder if you're a boy or a girl." I said, shoving his hand away, though the blush that rested on my cheeks said otherwise.

"I can't be happy at the fact that I have the loveliest girlfriend in the school?" He said, falling in step with me as we strolled through the hallways, back to the common room. "Even if she's quite a troll…" He added with a smirk.

"You can be as happy as you'd like," I said back apathetically, "Because I'm quite the opposite of happy – _my _boyfriend's a dimwitted idiot who got a _T _on his Herbology OWLs in fifth year. How could I date such a moronic person, I have no idea."

"Hey, that's targeting!" He yelled at me, though a smile was quite evident on his face. "I'm rubbish in that subject, you should know."

"There's no way to even be rubbish in that subject! All you have to do is draw plants!"

"Which is hard for the guy who's been drawing stick figures and suns with happy faces on them since first year!" He retorted. I rolled my eyes, chuckling.

"Quite mature of you, James."

"I'm too mature, really. I think it's a problem." He nodded his head seriously, and I just elbowed him in the ribs.

"Um, James? Lily?" A quiet voice called from behind me, and James and I turned around to see an awkward looking Rob there, his nose uncharacteristically blue and purple, a sure bruise from the boy standing next to me.

James protectively grabbed my hand and gripped it tightly, and I simply said, curiously, "Hello, Rob. Can I help you?"

James' eyes hardened as Rob shifted uncomfortably in his place. "Uh, yeah, could I bother you two for a second?"

"No." James said directly after Rob has finished asking, not missing a beat.

I gave him a pointed look and said, "Of course." He was a jerk, he was a filthy rat, but he was human, and if he had to tell us something, I would let him.

"Well, first, James." He said, turning to him. "I'm sorry, mate. I shouldn't have gone behind your back with Jillian." And then he turned to me. "And Lily. I'm sorry for everything I've done in the past, and for, uh…you know," He trailed off, uncertainly. I took a moment to watch him.

His eyes darted back and forth between the floor and my eyes, as he took careful to avoid direct eye contact with James. There were dark circles under his eyes, and his hair, usually gelled to perfection, stood up messily, the red color in it seeming more prominent, making his face look paler than it already was. He shirt was un-tucked in the front, having one part awkwardly hanging out of his trousers, and his fingers fidgeted uncomfortably by his sides, tensing every time James made any remote movement. He looked upset, but beyond that, afraid – afraid that James was going to sock him right in the face, I'm sure.

After figuring out that James wasn't going to say anything to him, I weighed my options: the first, to tell him off for the prat he was. The second, accept his apology and walk away. These were the same two options I had had when he apologized to me right before Easter break. But at that time, he didn't look nearly as distraught as he looked now. As sincere as he looked now.

Well, sincerity was never one of his strong points I decided as he still refused to look James in the eye.

Last time, I had simply walked away. And this time would be no different.

"It's alright, Rob. Past is past." I extended the hand that wasn't gripping James' towards him, and he cautiously reached forward and shook it. Before giving James the option to either shake his hand as well or ignore the gesture, I pulled, and we began walking down the hallway, back to the Gryffindor tower.

James finally spoke up when we were up several flights of stairs and nearly at the portrait hole. "I'll never understand how you can forgive and forget so easily."

"Well, I don't think a person ever _really _forgets when they forgive." I said slowly, trying to bring my thoughts together to form sensible words. "The remembering is what makes the forgiving easier, I suppose, because when you forget it, you never really get over it." I shrugged my shoulders after a moment, giving up on my ramble. "Just a thought."

"Insightful." James commented, and I nodded.

"I guess."

"You need to learn how to accept compliments from me." James said while chortling.

"I know how to accept compliments from you!"

"Saying, 'I guess', or 'I suppose', or 'If you think so' is not accepting a compliment."

"But it's not denying the compliment either."

"But if I _say _you're beautiful, you should just accept it."

"But _James - "_

"Jesus, get a room." A third voice said from behind us, and we turned to see Sirius there, looking annoyed and sick to his stomach. "The least you guys could do is move over a bit so I can at least get into the common room!"

"I wasn't aware you were behind us, Padfoot." James said, sidestepping to the right.

"'Course you didn't, you were too busy telling Lily darling over there that she's beautiful and such. Sickening, you two are. Just have sex and be done with it." He shook his head and said the password, climbing into the portrait hole. Sex with James. The idea sounded foreign and a bit scary to me. But I ignored the voice in the back of my head and just laughed.

Sirius was so jealous that I took his boyfriend away from him. Haters gonna hate.

* * *

"So Lily," Violet said as I slid into my long, silky green pajama bottoms and night shirt. "There's this boy I know, his name is James. Thoughts?"

"Fit." I responded, and Alice laughed heartily while Violet smirked a little. Macy just rolled her eyes.

"You two are so good together, really." Alice said after a minute. "I don't want to be one of those annoying girls, but the way he looks at you…it kills me." She said, and I smiled a bit to myself.

"Yeah, you two are really the couple of the year." Violet commented, crawling into her bed and pulling her hair back into a long braid. "I don't think I'll ever be sick of you guys."

I scoffed. "The similarities between you guys and a bunch of love-obsessed school girls is uncanny."

"Lily, you are the only person I know that would willingly use the word 'uncanny' in a sentence." Macy mused, brushing her wavy hair into a ponytail. Alice snorted and jumped onto her own bed.

"That's funny, considering you used the word 'succor' in a sentence just five minutes ago." She commented, and Macy's face turned bright pink.

"At least I don't talk like I'm an uneducated London twat!" Violet said, and we all smiled. Together, the three of us responded in a merry, sing-song voice, _"Only when we're drunk!" _And proceeded to laugh.

The drunk joke originated from our third year here at Hogwarts when a fifth year named Molly Mumford had gotten so completely out of it that she attempted to act like a London girl in front of a herd of seventh year boys, and of course, made a complete arse of herself. That was the first time any of us had been around under-aged drinking.

After the fit of giggles subsided, I lay backwards on my bed, sighing. "Girls, we have barely two months left together." And as soon as the words left my mouth, a pillow was thrown at me.

"Shut up!" Violet cried, having been the one who threw it at me. "Don't talk like that. We're not getting worked up about this now, not when there's still two months of parties and lessons and quidditch matches to look forward to! Plus, there's a Hogsmeade trip tomorrow!"

"Oh, about that…" I said nervously. "James and I are staying at the castle tomorrow, rather than going…" They all stared at me blankly, and finally, Alice just shook her head.

"Tart," She said with a smile, and I gaped at her and threw the pillow Violet had previously thrown at me at her, laughing when she received a mouthful of feathers.

"Oi, that was my pillow!" Violet said before picking up one of her stuffed animals and throwing it back at me. I caught it with ease and whipped it back at her, picking up my own pillow and chucking it at Macy.

It hit her square in the gut, and she fell forward, clutching her sides as we all howled with laughter.

"Not funny!" She cried, although she was still smiling, and soon, she was throwing the pillow back at me, and I was charging with a huge stuffed bear towards Alice, whacking her over the head with it, and Macy was on her bed, rapidly throwing stuffed animals at Violet, who was blocking with one of her bed sheets, and after a few minutes, an all out war was started, and I had never been happier spending the rest of my night tending to bruises and picking up feathers and laughing with my best friends about the completely outrageous seven years we had spent together.

* * *

Remus John Lupin was a very calm person, generally speaking.

He was studious, and quiet, and not very brave, though you would more than likely find him studying in the library than at the current party going on in one of the three houses' dorms (Slytherin was exempt from this). He was very conscientious and reasonable. He had only ever drank once, and after a terrible hangover the next day, swore to himself he would never do it again. He had only received one detention in his whole life, and vowed to never get one ever again when he discovered the disappointment he felt in himself. He also was fairly patient, considerate, and good at keeping secrets, and keeping his emotions in tact.

However, no human is perfect, and Remus still had his moments.

For example, he was standing in Zonko's when he saw Macy talking rather closely with the cashier, and he had accidently squeezed a fake wand too hard, breaking it. Instead of nobly paying for it, he just shoved it back onto the rack, too preoccupied with watching them from around the corner to notice the act of dishonesty.

"Really? You're a fan of Eva York too?" He asked, and she nodded happily, her wavy hair dancing around her face like streamers of gold at a party. The boy behind the cash register, a decent looking boy with a shapely chin and short hair, smiled approvingly and said, "Maybe we could go to her new book release next week, if that'd be something you're interested in." He asked, eying her curiously, awaiting a response.

And that, is when the last of Remus' patience vanished, and his calm demeanor left, and jealousy bubbled up to a point of no return, and he walked over to them and said rather rudely, "Excuse me, but I've been waiting to pay for my purchase for quite some time now."

Macy, upon seeing Remus, looked away quickly, the bridge of her nose flushing red as the boy stood in such close proximity to her. The cashier sized Remus up and down for a minute before saying, "You know, she hasn't even finished paying yet."

"I told you I couldn't afford to buy the extra Eva York magazine; no matter how much I want it. Just ring up these." Macy said disappointedly, pushing her purchases across the desk to him. Remus nearly jumped at the opportunity.

"Nonsense! Here." He slapped two galleons onto the desk and smiled proudly at the boy, who glared at him.

"That's an awfully nice thing for someone to do for a stranger." The cashier said suspiciously, and Remus shook his head.

"No, she's not some stranger, she's my girlfriend." He stated simply, and Macy's eyes nearly burst out of her skull.

"What?" She cried, sudden outrage overtaking her. Remus and the cashier both flinched as she huffed at the werewolf.

"You don't talk to me for nearly a month, and then just, just pretend nothing happened? You didn't even call it quits! You just ignored me!" She said furiously, though confusion was evident on her face. Remus opened his mouth to speak, but no words came forth.

"I don't know what we are right now Remus, but 'girlfriend' is certainly not a term I would use." She reached into her purse, dropped a third galleon on the table, grabbed her things, and left the shop in a rage.

Remus just looked after her, and after a moment, sighed and ran a hand through his sandy colored hair, exiting the shop through the second door on the complete other side.

Another thing Remus was, was scared. Scared to go after a girl who might not reciprocate his feelings anymore. And because of his ability to be so easily scared off by Macy, a girl he had fallen in love with, he didn't run after her. Because love is the scariest thing of all, and another thing Remus is not, is brave enough to face that girl with whom he had just lost his calmness, patience, and head over.

* * *

"Oh, how much do you love being alone in the castle." I said happily while smiling up at the enchanted ceiling in the great hall. Coincidently enough, James and I were the only people who had decided to stay at Hogwarts for this Hogsmeade trip, besides a handful of other students and, of course, the first and second years. So we sat at the table together, James and I, alone, pigging out on all the amazing things that the Hogwarts house elves offered for lunch.

"Hey, don't eat all the pudding, I want some!" He said as I added a second heap of the chocolate dessert onto my plate, leaving nothing left in the serving plate.

"Sorry, what did you say? I can't hear you over the sound of me enjoying this so much." I said while shoving a spoonful into my mouth. "Mmmm…" I said, rubbing my stomach with my free hand and closing my eyes in delight.

"Git." He said simply, grumbling as he shamefully settled on a third piece of biscuit. I laughed and opened my eyes, smiling at the boy.

"Fine. Take the pudding." And before he had time to react, I had dipped my finger in the pudding and had swabbed it all over his nose. James merely stared at the end of his nose, causing his eyes to be cross, which caused me to giggle, and in return caused him to chuckle in before putting his own finger in his raspberry jam and wiping it on my cheek.

I let out a shriek of surprise as the cold, sticky substance came in contact with my face, and he pulled his finger back, admiring his work. "It's a good look for you." He finally settled on saying, and I saw the familiar childlike glint of mischief in his eyes as I reached over and dipped my finger in my goblet of pumpkin juice.

"Parched? Here, have a drink." I said as I flicked droplets of pumpkin juice at his face. In a skillful manner, he held his plate up, blocking it, and in a split second, he had gotten whipped cream all over my cheeks and neck, and his nose and ears were dripping with grape juice and we were laughing as McGonagall glared at us from the table and offered the idea to dismiss ourselves before we gave the younger kids any ideas.

"Come on," he said, grabbing my grape juice-covered hand with his own whip cream coated one, and I shuddered.

"Eww, your hand's all sticky." I tried to squirm my hand out of his, but he just gripped it tighter and laughed.

"You're such a girl, Lily. Come on, we'll go to my room and use the sinks in there to wash off." I didn't protest, and within ten minutes, I was about to enter the famous Marauder's dorm in which I had visited a handful of times before.

"I warn you, I'm a fairly neat person, along with Remus, but Sirius and Peter…there's no telling what condition this room could be in with them as roommates." I rolled my eyes.

"I care an awful lot, James." Heavy sarcasm.

"As you wish, then." He said while pushing open the door to his dorm. The smell of cologne, leather, woods, and a bit of food wafted into my nose, and I took in the surroundings with a small smile – as promised, Remus' bed and bureau were neatly organized in the corner, while James' bed had a few records on it and a pair of pants, whilst Sirius and Peter's bunks and beds had a variety of things on top of them and scattered in the surrounding area.

"Not terribly bad." I commented, while pulling him into the bathroom. "Towels?" I asked, eager to get rid of the sticky, wet goop on my face and neck.

"The house elves usually put a fresh stack every morning on top of the hamper." He said, and my eyes searched the place he had indicated before finding a stack of white towels ready for using.

"White? Oh dear, I hope we don't stain them." I wondered out loud, but James just laughed and turned the water on.

"We have a drawer full of stuff that girls have left here over in that table, if you'd like to get some face soap that doesn't smell like aftershave over there."

"Ugh, male-tart."

"It's in the past, love."

But I walked over to the table anyway, pulled open the drawer, and pulled out a bottle of citrus facial cleanser, and washed my face with it anyway.

James walked back into the dorm while I merely dried off my face with a towel, breathing in the scent of lavender wash that was on it and fixing my hair before coming out after him.

"Lily, I have a really important confession for you." James said, as he held up a record next to my face.

"I listen to muggle music." He said, and I laughed while snatching at the record to read it.

"That's not a bad thing, I love muggle mus – No. _No. _Absolutely not. You're a Beatles fan?" I nearly yelled at him before running over to the record player off to the side of his room.

"Yes? Is that a bad thing?" he nervously followed after me, "Are they looked down upon in the muggle world or something?"

"No, not at all! They're my favorite band!" James' jaw nearly dropped.

"You're joking. I've known you for seven years, and you forgot to tell me you were a Beatles fan?" James shook his head. "Disappointing."

"This is my all time favorite song." I said as I placed the record on it and got it to start playing.

A tune started to sound from the turning table, and James, upon recognizing the song, said "Wow. This would be your favorite song." James shook his head. "It fits you.

"What? '_Here comes the sun_'?" I asked, and he nodded. "Of course, I should have guessed that as soon as you said you were a Beatles fan."

"What about you?" I said, sitting back onto his bed, tapping my foot to the song. "What's your favorite Beatle's song?"

"By far, _'Hey Jude'_" He answered easily, and I nodded.

"That's a good one."

"Obviously."

I smiled. "You have good taste in music."

"I'm aware." He casually stated back before changing to a different song. "Come on, let's dance."

My heart swelled at him, and I stood up without a second thought. "What song is it?"

When the lyrics of wanting to hold someone's hand came playing out in a simple melody, I shook my head. "The irony."

He smirked, grabbed my hand, and twirled me around. I gave a girly shriek of laughter before crashing into James from lack of direction at being dizzy.

He started dancing and singing to the music, taking my hands in his own, and moving them around in such an innocent and pure happy nature that I couldn't help dancing along with him and falling for him over, and over, and over again.

* * *

"Alice, if you don't buy that sundress, I might just hex you." Violet said sternly while Alice unsurely gripped her purse under her arm.

"It's nice and everything, but it's still a bit chilly out, and it's on the expensive side, and – "

"Oh my Merlin, Alice." Violet threw an arm over her friend's shoulder. "The last time you spent money on yourself was in January when you needed a new pair of quidditch gloves. Just _buy _it Alice. Don't think about it. Just do it."

After a moment, she nodded firmly, marched into the store, and came out with a white and black shopping bag under her arm.

"That's my girl!" Violet congratulated, slapping her on the back. Alice smiled back gleefully before the two girls headed into the Three Broomsticks.

"Here, I'll get a booth, and you can get the butterbeers." Violet said. Alice agreed, and within the next minute, Violet was sitting alone in a booth, that is, until Sirius came bouncing up to her, a charming grin on his handsome face.

"Hey, 'Lette." He said while squeezing in next to her, pecking her on the cheek when no one was looking. His hand rested on her upper thigh underneath the table, and Violet sighed – partially in contentment, and partially in disappointment.

"What's up?" Sirius said, recognizing the latter feeling behind the sigh. She looked him dead in the eyes and said, very easily, "You never planned on coming clean to everybody about us, did you?"

Sirius look taken aback for a moment before he said, "Violet, all our close friends know we're dating. Why does everyone else need to know?" He leaned back in his seat, removing his hand from her thigh to cross his arms. "I hate labels."

"So do I. But Sirius…you promised we'd tell everyone when we were both ready to. I'm ready for everyone else to know. But why aren't you?"

Sirius raised an eyebrow at her, but before he spoke, Violet remembered her conversation with Macy, and she rose up a perfectly manicured finger to hush him.

"Never mind. Forget I asked." She said quietly, throwing a shiny, dark lock of hair over her shoulder. Sirius eyes her for a second, and then sighed before gently kissing her on her forehead.

"I'll talk to you about this later, okay?" She nodded, her eyes gazing down at the floor, and he walked off, felling confused, conflicted, and leaving Violet sitting heartbrokenly at the table, alone.

* * *

James was a really good snogger.

I mean, like really, _really _good.

There was no way around it.

The way his hands worked skillfully at your sides and back and stomach.

The way he pressed his chest against your own, or the way his legs intertwined with yours sometimes.

The way his tongue was just so…_damn._

I breathed in cologne and quidditch and tasted cool mint. Just as always. The taste and smell was so familiar now, I could recognize it the second it came to me. But it was familiar in the best way possible – not in the '_it's getting old'_ kind of way, but in the way that you're reminded of a favorite pair of jeans, or a comfy pair of shoes, or a song you've heard one too many times. It's not bad, not even in the slightest. It's secure. Comfortable. Safe.

He gently pressed my back against the bookcase, and I felt my breath leave me when I heard footsteps coming our way. I quickly pushed him off me and pretended to be searching for something on the bookcase as the librarian peeked her head into our aisle.

"Are you two being strident over here? I thought I heard some ruckus going on…" She eyed the book on the ground (one I had accidently knocked off the shelf when I was running my hands through James' hair) and tutted contemptuously.

"I never thought you, Lily, would be one of those students that think school defilement is funny. Both of you, out, for the rest of the day."

Well, then.

James smirked proudly as we were booted from the library, and once we were in the safety of the nearly deserted hallway just outside of it, I hit his arm.

"I can't believe you got me kicked out of the library."

"That's not my fault." He defended, shoving his hands in his pockets while offering me a sly grin. "You're the _strident _kisser." I smacked him again.

"I bet you don't even know what strident means."

"Yes, well, you'd win money on that bet, then. But _I_ would bet it has something to do with the fact that I am an absolutely fantastic boyfriend. Yeah?"

"Yeah, something like that." I said sarcastically, and he merely shrugged and checked his watch.

"Well, it's about eight. We've already had dinner. We've already been to the astronomy tower. We've already been to the quidditch pitch. The forest. The library." He paused for a second. "Want to go take a victory lap around the castle?"

"We've nothing better to do, do we?" When he shook his head, I gave him a cunning grin.

"West enterance."

"What?"

"Race you."

"Excuse me?"

"_Go!" _And with that, I started sprinting down the hallway, my light pink button down, tight, flared jeans, and fashionable flats making it difficult to run comfortably. But I did anyway, not even turning around to see what James was doing, as I skid to a stop, took a sharp left, and kept sprinting down the next hallway. After a minute or so, I heard running behind me, and James was right there, neck and neck with me.

I could tell he wasn't running his fastest (honestly, quidditch captain versus girl who barely exercises – no competition), which made it worse than if he had just completely beat me flat out. He was taunting me. Mocking me. And I couldn't let him do that.

Just as we were about to get to the enterance, the door wide open, the black of the night outside inviting us, just as he was about to win, I dove. Not for the door, heaven's no. But for James.

I successfully landed on his back, and him, not expecting the surprise, fell forward, out into the night, and we landed onto the wet grass together, laughing and panting and clutching the ground for dear life.

After a few moments, I really noticed how silly it was for us to have gone outside – it had been a bit rainy in the morning, causing the ground to be wet, but that didn't matter when we were walking through the forest, who's trees had prevented the ground from being rained on hard, and playing quidditch, which was up in the sky. No, now, we were on the soft earth, grass stains on our clothes, body soaked, hair damp, and mud all over our fronts from where we had tumbled over.

"Lily Evans, between lunch today and your previous act, I've come to the conclusion that you are one messy, messy girl." James said after standing up and extending an arm to me. I blindly reached for it, and he lifted me to my feet. I looked at my hands, which were covered in dirt, and I could only assume after seeing the mud all over James' body and face, that I looked similar.

"I apologize for my messes." I giggled stupidly, feeling butterflies as he gently rubbed a splotch of mud from my cheek. He looked down at me for a second, and for some reason, pulled me close to him.

His head rested on top of mine, his arms securely around my body, and I followed suit, breathing him in. We stood there, silent, embracing, wet, covered in mud, hair messy, clothes ruined, and the scene could not have looked more odd, but could have not felt more perfect.

So when we're in the head's dorms, and we're cleaning each other off, and we laugh and splash each other with the cold water from the faucet, much like we did just this afternoon, I stand on my tip toes, kiss him, and started pushing him back towards his room.

He pressed me up against the door and broke the kiss, looking down at me with those hazel eyes of his. He stroked a piece of auburn hair behind my ear, and I know now what Alice meant when she said, _'the way he looks at you…'_

I smiled up at him, adoration radiating off of me, and he finally leaned down again to capture my lips with his own, and behind me placed a hand on the door to push it open. I sighed against his mouth and reached up to grab his collar while his hands gripped at the bottom of my shirt, slowly tugging it upwards, leaving tingling sensations of warmth and desire on my skin. I pulled him closer, closer, and started walking backwards, pulling him with me until we stumbled onto the bed.

The thought of what was going to inevitably happen didn't scare me anymore – his tongue ran over my lips, and his hands ran over my stomach, and my head swam with emotion – passion, warmth, affection, want - I needed more of him. Yet I knew I could never get enough.

My hands tugged on the tufts of his dark hair, and heat swirled in the pit of my stomach, along with the butterflies that were fluttering wildly and the erratic beat of my heart. Fervor surged through me, and suddenly, I was unbuttoning James' shirt, my hands pressing against his warm, strong chest and pushing the garment off his shoulders.

James broke the kiss and breathlessly said, "Lily?"

"Yes?" I responded coyly, blinking up at him and panting as a shy smile played on my lips. He looked completely bewildered and astonished before he leaned down to kiss my forehead. When he backed up again, I stopped and stared up at him.

"I'm not gonna…make you do anything you don't want to do." Affection swirled in his eyes, and I beamed up at him.

"I want this." I said softly, and that was all the encouragement he needed – he lowered himself on top of me, our lips meeting, our stomachs kissing, and my heart soaring.

_**A/N Musical Inspiration – **_

_**Hanging by a moment – Lifehouse. If you remember, I listened to this song when Lily and James were flying on broomsticks together in the sixth chapter, and I thought it suited that during their scenes in school.**_

_**For me this is heaven – Jimmy Eat World. This song is my all time favorite song, and whenever I hear this now, I think of Remus and Macy. This is their unofficial song. I always imagine this playing with their scenes, especially the one in this chapter.**_

_**Home – Michael Buble. This is for Sirius and Violet. Not related lyric-wise, but I kind of imagined this playing in the back round in the Three Broomsticks.**_

_**And finally, Hear you me – Jimmy Eat World. This is the song that I imagined playing since the mud scene to the very end. **_

_**There's only a few more chapters after this, and I'm pleased with how this story is coming to be wrapped up. Two or three more chapters at the most, including the epilogue if I decide to include it. After this I the other project I told you in mind, but I also got the plot bunny for another story, this one about Lily in the order after school, etc. but this one would be Romance/drama and would include a lot more stuff about the war and family than humor. So which ones would you guys like to see more? Or both? At the same time, or do one, then do the other? Opinions, thank you!**_

_**And also, thank you so much to everyone who's been following this and updating it. I set my goal for this story to be 250 reviews by the end, and the fact that I'm shy of 375 right now makes me so happy, you have no idea. I have so many people alerting it and favoriting it every single day, and someone's even translating it right now. I can't believe how far this has come. Thank you so much to every single person for reading this, I mean it completely, 100%. You have made this story ten times better than it would have been without you guys. I cannot thank you enough.**_

_**LOL for lots of love,**_

_**Roxalicous.**_


	18. Chapter 18

Explosion. Smoke. Dust flying, burnt textbook pages scattered throughout the air, singed quills and parchment. Laughter. And then running.

"Take a left here!" James yelled as him, Sirius, Remus, and Peter took a sharp turn and continued sprinting down the corridors. Filch hollered after them, running with a slight limp after them while coughing from the debris in the air surrounding him.

A few corridors later, Sirius and Remus lay themselves in an empty classroom, panting, while James, still heavily breathing, pulled a piece of parchment from his back jean pocket.

He pointed his wand at it and muttered, "I solemnly swear that I'm up to no good", only for the words _The Marauder's Map _toreveal itself in scripted, curvy handwriting on the front of it. After flipping it open, James scanned his eyes over it briskly, said the counter curse, and thrust it back into his pocket.

"Well, Filch is in the dungeons right now. I'm assuming that last right down the east wing threw him off, though I reckon we've got some time until he even comes to this floor." He trudged to a chair and fell back in it, smiling as a bead of sweat dripped down the side of his face. "Well, mates, I'd say that was a nice prank. Though we still need one more to end off our years here – and it has to be _big."_

Peter leaned against the wall and slid down, his back against it, until he sat on the floor. "Last time I ran that much was when Sirius and I were caught trying to steal Carolina McCoy's knickers."

Sirius let out a low whistle. "That was way back in fifth year. Seems like yesterday." He mused, flicking a piece of his dark, wavy hair out of his grey eyes. He sighed. "Time sure flies, Wormy. I think I need a butterbeer."

"Oh no you don't." Remus said, tapping his watch. "We've got precisely two hours until the dance, and that is not enough time for you to get drunk and sober up quickly enough."

Sirius whined and stomped his foot childishly while James ran a hand through his hair, musing up the back of it. "Ah, blimey, Lily and I have got to get to the dance early, being the heads and all. I suppose I should leave now." He murmured casually, pushing his legs up off the ground and beginning to head towards the door.

"Merlin forbid we keep Lily darling waiting." Sirius sniggered, and him and Remus and Peter went into a rendition of the Beatles, _"And I love her."_

"Oh, quiet up, you three." James mumbled in irritation, a blush creeping up on his nose.

* * *

I studied my appearance in the mirror, smiling, despite my obvious happiness that I already showed, no doubt. Green, I had decided, would be the color of my dress, for through my seven years here I had refused to wear it, declaring the idea to be too cliché because of my eyes. But really, I was just being stupid, noticing how nicely it fit me now.

My pale, slightly freckled skin seemed porcelain under the green silk that adorned my body. Two thin straps, a plunging neck line, open back, and emerald colored material that flow gracefully from my waist to the ground. Golden hoop earrings. The locket. Soft, curly hair. Light pink blush and lip tint. Perfect.

"God, you're gorgeous." I heard a voice say from behind me, and I turned to the enterance to my Head's dorm, spotting James. Black dress robes. A green, silk tie that matched the color of my dress. A rose corsage he twirled absentmindedly in his hands. And it was even more perfect.

"And you look quite handsome yourself." I giggled as he slipped into the room, making his way over to me and lightly picking up my hand.

"Miss Evans." He said, and I smiled as he delicately kissed it before sliding the corsage onto my wrist. I inhaled and sighed – cologne. Quidditch. Beauty.

"Would you please allow me to escort you, Princess, to the Great Hall?" He extended and arm to me, and I put my own in it.

"I would be glad to." And then he leaned down and kissed the side of my forehead, and we descended the staircase and made our way to the Great Hall.

"Oh, lovely! You two are here, right on time." McGonagall said as soon as we entered the Great Hall. The ceiling was dimly lit with candles, and the nighttime sky was black, except for the millions of stars that were scattered beautifully through the darkness of the black. Silver, midnight blue, and dark purple cloths hung from the walls and covered the tables, and a giant Eiffel tower rested in the corner, made from streams of grey and metallic magic that were fashioned to represent it. The sight was perfect.

Perfect, perfect, perfect.

I needed to expand my vocabulary.

"So, the band is all set up, the food is all prepared, and the dance floor is ready for dancing. Let me give you a run-down of the night, now. Albus?" The Headmaster nodded and put a hand on James shoulder, pulling him in one direction, while McGonagall pressed a hand on my back and guided me in a different one. I glanced briefly over my shoulder and gave James a nervous smile, one that he returned with a slightly sheepish one.

"The night will start with greetings and mingling at seven, and at eight I expect everyone to be seated and eating. After the food, the dance floor will be open, and at nine, you and James will announce the King and Queen of the dance. Voting will be taking place right next to the drink section until quarter of, which is when we will start counting them. Clear?" Before I even had time to respond, McGonagall said, "Good." And was ushering me towards the Headmaster, who had just sent James to go and talk to the band about the playlist.

"Ah, Miss Evans, you look exquisite." Dumbledore said, his eyes twinkling behind his half-moon spectacles. My cheeks reddened as I thanked him coyly, and soon he was speaking to me about the dance in a tone quite a lot bit calmer than McGonagall's had been.

"Forgive Minerva, she's just a little distraught that there's only a few weeks left until the end of the year. Your class has been her favorite, I believe." I didn't even bother to hide my disbelief as I gaped as him.

"P-Professor? With all due respect, I think we're her _least _favorite class, with the Marauders and Snape and I bickering all the time and Mulciber and Lucius' leaving Hogwarts to become death eaters and the record breaking number of detentions Gryffindor has ever seen and – "

Dumbledore just smiled down at me and nodded. "Yes. You have grown on her. You will all be missed, greatly, I assure you."

…

Crazy old man.

After another brief run-through of the events of the night, the students started arriving, and I was dismissed and allowed to go meet with my friends, who were giggling happily with their dates.

Violet, wearing a long, tight, violet dress (the irony), glittered under the dim lights as she clung to Sirius' arm – their first public outing. And I'm sure she was not letdown.

Macy, a light blue, princess ball-gown draping over her petite frame, her wavy blonde hair pinned up, and a blush resting on her cheeks as she stood next to a tall seventh year Hufflepuff who she had agreed to go with.

Alice, a cherry red and black, kimono style dress hugging her curvy body, a smile on her lips as she and Frank intertwined their hands together, happy to have made up and be together again.

And Remus and Peter, who were both standing quite single, though they, too, wore bright smiles and shared laughter with the others in a manner quite similar to the way they had before the year's drama unfolded, much like the compartment on the train that they had been in a few months ago. It may as well been a few years ago.

"Beautiful, all you ladies look." Remus said, his eyes grazing over the group, his eyes resting a little bit longer on Macy, who looked down and bit her lip.

Violet threw her dark, long hair over her shoulder and said, "Well, of course you lot look quite dashing, too."

"Though I look the best." James said, stepping into the group next to me seemingly out of nowhere. He threw an arm around my shoulder. "Plus, I've got the prettiest date here."

The girls cooed (including Peter), Remus laughed, Frank scoffed, and Sirius pretended to throw up in his mouth. All was normal. Except for the tall Hufflepuff that really did not seem to fit in at all.

"Ever since you two started sleeping together, Prongs has been whipped to the bone. A bit embarrassing, I'd say, mate." Sirius said, and I turned my face away from him to hide my blush. James coughed awkwardly and the rest of the group laughed (Sirius really wasn't that funny, bloody prick.)

"Everyone, please sit,! Yes, good!" Slughorn called from the chaperone's table as the crowd of students went to find their seats. As no surprise, James and I were seated with Sirius and Violet, Alice and Frank, and Peter and Remus. Macy and her what's-his-name Hufflepuff friend were seated at a different table.

The conversation took off, and they were laughing once again and bickering about politics and religion and stupid things, but Remus sat glumly on the end of the table, pushing around his steak and tiredly chewing as his eyes frequently flickered to Macy.

"I feel so bad for Moony." James whispered in my ear while I sipped from my goblet. "He's hopelessly in love with her, you know."

"And she's still in love with him, too." I sighed, "I would do just about anything to get those two to make up already." I placed my goblet down, my eyes wandering to Macy, who gave the Hufflepuff a half-hearted smile as he asked her to go up and dance with him. I checked the time – eight thirty.

"Come on." I pushed my chair back and addressed the table. "The dancing's going to start any minute." Just as the words left my mouth, a loud, blaring, rock tune sounded from the stage the band was on, and James was tugging me to the dance floor with the rest of the group not too far behind us.

And we danced. Man, we danced. We sang along to lyrics we didn't know, making up our own, danced like the fools we were, creating dance moves that surely didn't exist, for the dancer would look stupid doing it, but we didn't care – we were having fun. I smiled up at James, who smiled back down at me, and shouted the final words of the playing song into the air.

Perfect.

A half hour passed quickly, and soon James' hand was in my own, and he pushed me towards the microphone.

"Hello, everyone!" I gave a light wave, and a few people waved back at me. I cleared my throat. "I'm glad you could all make it tonight. Are you having fun?" The obnoxious cheers and clapping confirmed the question.

"Brilliant." I smiled, and Dumbledore handed a sealed envelope to James, who graciously accepted it from him.

"Well, as you all know, the next event of the night is announcing the King and Queen of the ball, which we have enclosed in this little envelope right here." James said, motioning to the paper in his hands.

"_Open it!" _Someone screamed from the sea of students that had gathered around the small stage we were on, and after another small applause, James laughed and handed me the letter.

"Would you do the honors?" I nodded, and my finger broke through the thin white envelope with ease. The paper, simply a small slip of spare parchment, had just two names scribbled down on it in neat, black ink, and my heart seemed to stop beating all together as I read the names:

_James Potter and Lily Evans._

I stared at it in disbelief, and James raised an eyebrow at me before peering down over my shoulder and reading it.

"Ah," He said softly, enclosing his hand around my own, which clutched the parchment. "No surprise here – And the King and Queen are, _Remus Lupin and Macy Hussey!"_

…what?

I whipped my head to look up at him, just as two spotlights were sent on the two unsuspecting students. Remus, who had previously been slouching in the corner of the Great Hall, straightened up as he confusedly stared at James, who was beaming down at him. Macy, who was with the Hufflepuff what's-his-face, and whose cheeks were bright red, blinked rapidly.

"Well, come on then, don't be shy!" James said, and I finally managed a smile at the crowd, ignoring my own confusion as I allowed whatever James was trying to do play out. The two of them came up onto the stage, and a small tiara was placed on Macy's head, a golden crown on Remus'.

Courteous applause erupted from the crowd, and the band began to play a dramatically slower, softer tune from the previous music of the night. "Come on, kiddies." James ushered them to the dance floor, and Remus looked like he was going to pass out as he faced Macy, who looked like she was about to cry.

Oh Merlin, James, what did you do?

The lights dimmed again, and Remus politely grabbed Macy's hand, placing his other on her waist, and began to rotate, albeit awkwardly. Macy finally gave in, placing her own hand on his shoulder, and other couples began to pair off and dance around them. I felt James' hand, which was still in mine, lead me down the steps of the stage, and soon we had begun to dance with the other pairs around us.

I couldn't help but angrily glare up at him. "James, why did you do that? Remus and Macy look so awkward right now." I snapped, annoyed with him. He rolled his eyes.

"Don't be dramatic, Lily. Look – they're talking." He pointed his chin in the direction of them, and, somehow, they were exchanging words. Civil words, with no fighting, and…did Macy just laugh?

"I know what I'm doing, Lily. Sometimes you just need to trust me." I looked back up at him, and he was giving me an arrogant smirk. Just like old times.

"And, I think I've had just enough attention to last a lifetime." He admitted, shrugging his shoulders, and I realized right there, right then, that the thing I thought would have never happened just a year ago, happened. James Potter matured.

He grew up.

He was everything I wanted him to be, but was still himself. He was still teasing, bickering, handsome. He was still James.

He was perfect.

Perfect, perfect, perfect.

I would never get tired of that word.

* * *

"Can you just tell me one thing?" Macy said quietly as she and Remus spun around on the dance floor, just as they did back in December. It couldn't have seemed longer ago, that night when they blushed at each other, shyly, unsurely, harboring mere crushes for each other. Remus nodded.

"Why?" She asked simply, and he pondered for a moment.

Remus John Lupin was not a very brave person. He was never very brave, yet somehow he had been sorted into Gryffindor, along with people like James and Sirius and Lily, who were so sure of themselves and had enough confidence for the entire school. He was always questioning himself – always wondering if he was good enough. Good enough for Gryffindor, good enough for bravery, good enough for Macy, even though he was a werewolf.

Remus John Lupin was not a very brave person. But now would be that defining moment when he would change that.

"Macy Jamielynn Rebecca Cassandra Hussey." He murmured quietly, and she blushed, for the last time she spoke her full name, he had kissed her, and she wondered if he was going to do it again.

"I started ignoring you because you're too good for me, and…when, well, when you love someone, you want what's best for them, and I am certainly not what's best for you." But the rest of his dialogue, she did not hear, for she had stopped dancing and listening and breathing when he had uttered the words, "_When you love someone…"_

"You l-love me." She repeated, blinking up at him blankly. Remus cringed.

"Please don't yell at me again."

"You love me." She said once more, still not quite believing the words herself. Remus sighed.

"I'm sorry, Macy. I should have told you earlier, I just, well, I didn't know how to, and – " And this time, Macy flung herself at him, and her lips were on his own in a matter of seconds, and they revolved on the spot, the conflict solved and the night upon them.

* * *

"Psst, Lily."

Go away.

"Lily? Ugh, fine. Prongs!"

Sirius, neither of us are responding, we're a little busy…

"Proooonnnngggssss…"

"_What?" _James finally snapped, throwing open the door to the broom cupboard that we were in. I angrily crossed my arms over my chest, huffing as I fixed my hair. Geez, Sirius, why don't you try cock-blocking just a _little _bit harder next time…

"Cool that fire, Prongs. Look, the gang is ditching the dance and heading out for a last midnight swim in the lake. I thought you'd be interested in being included, that's all." Sirius started to walk away, and I laughed as James called after him.

"Fine, fine, when?" He asked, and Sirius waved over his shoulder.

"Twenty minutes to be changed and at the lake, starting now. Better hop to it, you two."

As soon as Sirius turned down the next hallway, James looked back at me. "Interested in going?"

"Of course I am!" I hopped up, brushed off my dress, and linked my arm in his. "Let's go!"

James groaned. "Can't we finish up here first…?"

I swatted his arm, "No, you prat. Come on."

Soon, we were up in the Head's dorms, me in my bathing suit and a blue cover-up, James in his swim trousers and a plain white tee-shirt. Huddled under the invisibility cloak, we made our way through the corridors and out the enterance to the castle, the hot, sticky, humid are brushing on our skin as we tore the cloak off ourselves and began walking down towards the lake.

Violet, Sirius, and Frank were already there, meaning that Remus and Macy (who had spent the rest of the night snogging until McGonagall kicked them out for inappropriate behavior) and Peter and Alice were still on their way.

"Well, what're you lot waiting around for?" James ripped off his shirt and started running to the black lake, jumping into it with a loud crashing sound. Sirius grinned and jumped in after him, while Frank decided to go for an even _stupider _approach, settling on, instead, climbing a tree and jumping off one of the various limbs and into the lake.

"Ah, don't you love swim suit season?" Violet said, diving gracefully into the water in her white, string bikini. I laughed and shook my head before peeling off my own blue cover up, sporting my own black one, which contrasted violently with my pale skin, and lowered myself into the water until I was completely under it.

When I reemerged, Macy and Remus were present, and they decided just to splash around in the shallow area of the water while when Alice came, she jumped head first into the lake, and Peter belly flopped from one of the lower tree branches, causing a good laugh out of us all.

"Gotta love Wormtail, yeah?" James said, appearing next to me and laughing when Peter dragged himself onto the grass, a giant, red welt on his stomach from where it came in contact with the water. I giggled and nodded.

"He's cute. Way cuter than my ugly boyfriend." He whined in protest, and I smiled and placed a chaste kiss on the top of his nose.

"I'm only kidding, James. You need to learn to joke around a little." I poked him in the shoulder, and he poked me back.

"Or maybe I need to find a new girlfriend." He bantered back, poking me still until his hands were all of my body, tickling me, and I shrieked with laughter and squirmed hopelessly in his arms, kicking the water around me.

"S-Stop!" I screeched, and he only laughed further as he threw me over his shoulder instead.

"Nope." He said while carrying me out of the lake, laying me on the soft grass once we reached level ground. He peered down at me, the moon lighting my face, my hair in a crazy mess on the greenery surrounding my head, my skin glistening from the water in the black lake.

"You're really quite beautiful, you know." He said after a moment, and I placed my hand on the back of his neck, pulling him down to meet his lips with my own. He smiled and lay down next to me, softly stroking the length of my arm as we enveloped each other, stopping to exchange giggles and soft laughter and hushed whispers in between kisses of innocence and flawlessness.

"Never have I eveeerrr…" Sirius drawled out from a short distance away, stroking his chin thoughtfully until he snapped his fingers, "streaked in front of anyone over forty!"

"Implying you have streaked before." Alice shook her head while Peter put one of his fingers down. Sirius wriggled his eyebrows suggestively.

"James, Lily, are you playing?" Violet called from over her shoulder as the rest of the group sat in a circle on the grass, dripping from the water. I nodded and crawled over to them, James doing the same.

"Okay, never have I ever told someone I've hated them." Remus said slowly, and I slowly put one of my own fingers down. James chuckled next to me and shook his head.

"Sorry." I apologized quickly, and he just grinned at me.

"It's alright. I always knew you'd figure out how bad you wanted me eventually." I shoved his shoulder and stuck my tongue out at him.

"Fine. I take my apology back."

"Never have I ever," Macy began, "drank more than three shots of fire whisky in a row."

"Guilty." Sirius said, winking, as he put down another one of his fingers, along with James and Peter and Violet.

"Okay, never have I ever…lost a game of never have I ever." I said lamely, and everyone laughed and put down a finger, minus Macy.

James' turn. "Never have I ever…eaten mashed potatoes." He shook his head. "I just can't do it, they look gross."

And then Sirius threw a piece of grass at him. "That was awful, Prongs." And James took the challenge and jumped on Sirius, tackling him and pinning him to ground before the two of them rolled on top of each other, wrestling and laughing. Remus and Peter rolled their eyes, for I'm sure they had witnessed this countless times before, and went swimming again with Violet and I. an hour or so later, we all agreed to part our ways, for the end of the dance was approaching and when people started to file out, surely our absences would be noticed.

"Ugh, I hate lake water." I said as I trudged up to the Head's dorms with James, running a hand through my hair. "It's gross."

"Yeah, I'm not gonna lie, it really is." He agreed, and together we entered the common room of the Head's dorms. I started up my staircase.

"Well I'm beat, and fancy a nice, long, hot shower." I started trotting up the staircase when a sudden thought hit me. A memory replayed in my head, and I grinned mischievously before turning around again and propping a hip out.

"Care to join me?"

James, who has been beginning to ascend his own staircase, did a double-take; he stared at me for a second, and just as the familiarity of the words hit his mind, he smiled devilishly and came after me as I ran up the stairs, giggling crazily.

* * *

Green. Brown. Light blue. Dark blue. Grey. More green. More brown.

I counted the colors in James' eyes as the morning sun shone in from my window on us. His hand, which was thrown around my waist, loosely clutched the white material on my back as I breathed him in. We watched each other. Just watched. Listened to each other's heartbeats. Smelt each other's scents. Felt each other's bodies. We had figured out a sort of harmony between us – a rhythmic pattern between us that we had perfected the first time we were together. A rhythmic pattern that I seemed to know my whole life.

"Nine." His eyebrow shot up, and I threaded one of my hands through his dark, messy hair. "Nine different shades of colors in your eyes."

He stared back at me, and then he moved forward, nuzzling his head into my neck, the tips of his hair barely brushing the underside of my chin. I giggled as his nose tickled my chest.

"Lily?"

"Hmm?"

"I love you."

His lips ghosted the words across my skin, and I felt my heart soar as my hand absentmindedly intertwined with his own. The next words I said were the most natural, faultless, easiest words that have ever left my mouth.

"I love you too."

* * *

"I do have a lot of things I need to do before I finish Grad school." Violet mused, shoving her hands in her jean shorts pockets. "I guess it's sort of like a bucket list of things I want accomplished before I'm twenty one." Sirius nodded and hummed in respond, his arm thrown over her shoulder as they walked.

"I don't suppose you know it off the top of your head?" She blushed and nodded, and Sirius laughed in response. "Of course you do. Mind if I hear it?"

"Well…if you really want to." She began to mentally list things off, counting with her fingers. "Well first, I want to pass Grad school with flying colors."

"Alright…"

"I want to have a well-secured job."

"Naturally."

"A nice house."

"I'm sure it'll be very nice, indeed."

"And a nice family."

"A nice family, sounds gre…uh, hold on, what?"

Violet blushed even harder than she had before and nodded enthusiastically. "Yes. A husband. And a family. A few kids; my own, obviously. Wouldn't it be grand?" She exhaled dreamily, her long, dark hair flying around her as they walked through the corridors. Sirius scratched the back of his head unsurely.

"Uh, s-sounds...brilliant."

Violet looked up at him from under her dark eyelashes. "You stuttered."

"I apologize, Miss Tatum." He finished suavely, mentally cursing himself for the small slipup. Violet stopped walking, for at this point they were almost in front of the Gryffindor common room enterance.

"You don't want a family?" She asked suddenly, one of her slim arms propped on her hip. Sirius shrugged his shoulder.

"I dunno, I don't think that, perhaps, _now _is the time to think about it…" He rambled, lightly waving it off with a hand in the air. Violet stopped him.

"You're not thinking about your family? Your future? Especially with," her voice quieted to a whisper, "_You-know-who_ and his followers rising to power?"

"You _don't_ think I'm thinking about that?" Sirius hissed. "Of course I am. Half my _family _makes up his followers, 'Lette. I just don't want one." He said, removing his hand from her shoulder and crossing it coldly with his other arm over his chest. "What's the point of having a family if all that stuff's going on anyway, especially with the lingering possibility that they'll grow up and betray you anyway? _What's the point_?" he repeated, laughing sarcastically. "Because I don't see one."

"Why are you being like this?" Violet asked after a moment, giving both herself and Sirius a moment to cool off. Sirius ran a hand through his wavy hair and sighed.

"'Lette, Bella wants to kill me. Cissy is marrying herself to that seventh year Syltherin, Malfoy, who bullied me in first year. Regulus and I barely talk anymore, let alone see each other, and Andromeda up and left, so I can't even turn to her." Sirius frowned and looked down at the floor. "My own mother can't say my name without spite, and every time my father says it, he makes this face, like it leaves a bad taste on his tongue. I've been burnt off the family tree, I've been disowned, and I've been living with my best friend and his parents, who are divorced." His grey eyes seemed to cloud as he chuckled darkly. "I don't really have the best experiences with family."

Violet looked at him for a moment, and slowly, she came up to him and wrapped her arms around his waist, pressing her forehead against his chest. "Sirius, I'm so sorry."

"It's okay." He muttered, affectionately stroking her hair. "But, Violet…"

"Yes?" She parted from him and looked up, her chocolate eyes making contact with his own, and she suddenly saw how weary and drained and worn and just absolutely _exhausted_ he looked.

"I'm never going to be able to give you that." He mumbled, his voice strained with ache, and Violet's eyes widened.

"W-What?"

"I mean," he kissed her forehead and spoke into it, his lips brushing against the skin there, "I'm never going to get married. I'm never going to have kids, or grandkids, or the…the kind of lifestyle you want." He breathed in her scent, the one that had grown so familiar to him, and exhaled. "I'm not going to school after this, and I'm not going to run from Voldemort - yes, I said his name, _Voldemort. _I'm going to fight. And I don't want any regrets, anything that might hold me back from doing all I can to stop this war."

"So, what you're trying to say is…" Violet muttered, her lip trembling slightly as water pooled in the corners of her eyes. Sirius grabbed her chin between his finger and thumb and lifted it, so she looked in his eyes.

"Hey," He spoke softly, barely audible over her small sniffles, and he pressed his lips to her own, probably the last kiss he would ever give her, Sirius thought sadly. "I still love you, 'Lette. I think I'm always gonna love you a little bit." He laughed quietly, for she looked so sad, yet there was still an undeniable beauty about her.

"S-So, I'm just supposed to, find someone else, get married to him, have a family with him, and be as happy with him, a-as I am with…with you, and have been with you, for the past few months?" Sirius stayed quiet, and Violet shakily shook her head, pulling herself away from his embrace.

"Well, Sirius, if you've made up your choice." She gave him a watery laugh and muttered the password to the fat lady, who opened the portrait hole silently, granting her access. "I suppose, I can't do anything to change it then, can I?" It was a statement, not a question.

Sirius stared at the ground ashamedly. "I'm sorry." He breathed, and she merely shook her head once more, the portrait hole closing behind her.

* * *

_Remolded Maubry's. _

Remolded Maubry's?

_Remolded Maubry's._

"_Always open and looking for services!"_

Services? What did that mean? People to partake in the play? But why would McGonagall want me to be in a play…?

And the bird, what did that mean? The fire on the border? Was it just design, or perhaps it was a symbol?

"Merlin," I cried out in frustration, throwing the paper down on the bed in front me and staring at it. The dorm was empty, and I sat on my bed, the flyer in front of me, where it looked up at me, almost mockingly.

"I swear, McGonagall's become crazier than Dumbledore…" I muttered under my breath, and suddenly, the paper in front of me seemed to glow a bright red. As soon as the weird gesture happened, however, it had stopped, and I was left staring at it, my hand reaching for my wand in self-defense.

I waited a minute, and nothing happened. What was going on? I poked my wand on the paper, but still, it did not give.

What the hell?

I racked my brain to think of the cause, but the only thing I could come up with was the sentence I had just said.

"I swear," I started slowly, carefully eyeing the paper on my bed, "McGonagall's become crazier than Dumbledore." And then again, the paper lit up a glowing red, and vanished. My heart skipped a beat, and excitement swelled up inside my chest.

I knew McGonagall would never just give me this for no reason. I tried to single out one word, the key word, which had caused the light to glow.

"McGonagall." Nothing.

"Er…crazier." My bed creaked under me, but other than that, nothing happened to the slip in front of me. My eyes suddenly shone in realization.

"Dumbledore!" I shouted, and the paper sparked for another few seconds before going out again.

"Dumbledore," the light went off, and this time, I noticed that most of the letters in the words, _Remolded Maubry's, _were lighting up. I counted the letters, quickly summoned a quill and parchment, and began scribbling down on it.

_Remolded Maubry's _I quickly scrawled down, also writing down the word, _Dumbledore _next to it. Dumbledore, Remolded Maubry's…Dumbledore, Remolded Maubry's…

I said, "Dumbledore!" aloud once again, and wrote down the letters that were glowing amidst the words. _R…E…O…L…D…E…D…M…U…B…S…_those were the only letters out of the two words that were lighting up, and I examined them.

_R… E… O… L… D… E… D… M… U… B… S. Dumbledore. _They were the same letters, minus the s.

_A hidden message!_

The last four letters – _M…A…R…Y…_

"Mary?" I tried out loud. No response. I reordered them.

_A…R…M…Y…_

"Army?" I said weakly, and the four letters lit up. A smile grew on my face.

"Dumbledore! Army!" And the letters all lit up, minus the _S, _so, in an epiphany of sorts, I cried out in understanding, "Dumbledore's army! _Dumbledore's army!"_

Suddenly, the paper erupted into sparks, and the words floated from the paper and into the air in front of me, reforming to read, _Dumbledore's army, _until they sank back onto the paper, in this new combination.

The bird, previously still, flapped it's great, long wings and the fire from the border seemed to envelope it. I stared at it dumbly, amazed, as the bird seemed to absorb the fire, creating a phoenix. The paper emitted an orangey glow, much like an ember, and the words, "_Always open and looking for services!" _suddenly made sense.

Something from the back of the page seemed to be burning through to the front, and I flipped the paper over, only to see a list. A list of names.

_Alice Prewett. _Weird, that was her handwriting…

_Sirius Black. _That was Sirius' handwriting, too…

_Mary Macdonald. _

_Peter Pettigrew._

_Emmeline Vance. _A Ravenclaw in my year.

_Edgar Bones. _A Hufflepuff who graduated just two years ahead of me.

_Caradoc Dearborn._

_Remus Lupin._

_James Potter. _I would recognize that signature anywhere.

_Benjy Fenwick._

_Frank Longbottom._

And then, at the bottom of the page, there was one blank spot opened, one which I could only guess was for me, and without a second thought, a new name had joined the others on the list of the recruits.

_Lily Evans._

* * *

I quickly grabbed my coat – although June was just around the corner, the nighttime was still chilly – tucked the flyer into my pocket, and ran to join James, who was already waiting by the door to the Gryffindor common room with Sirius, Remus, Peter, Alice, and Frank near him.

"Couldn't have taken any longer…" Frank whispered jokingly, only to be hushed by the rest of the group.

"Quiet, Frank!" Alice said as Peter muttered the password to the Fat Lady, who swung open the door almost immediately. "We don't want to get caught sneaking out past midnight on a weekday."

"We're meeting Dumbledore, though." I said as James took my hand, and quietly, the lot of us crept down one of the long hallways, taking a turn once we reached the end of it.

"Who knows if we're meeting Dumbledore?" Remus said, rubbing his arms for warmth. "McGonagall gave us this sheet of paper, and for all we know, she could just be trying to catch us and figure out how we always sneak out."

"Oh, come off it, Moony. I trust Dumbledore, no matter how crazy he is. McGonagall, too." James added as an afterthought, and we started to climb down several flights of staircases, until, finally, we reached the enterance way to the castle.

A short, silent walk later, we were outside the castle barriers, and Sirius turned to us. "Okay, I sent Bones an owl the other day, and he said that _Remolded Maubry's _is just outside of London. I say we all apparate to Bricket Wood, and then it should be just half a kilometer walk from the old house on Dagger Lane. Sound alright?" We all agreed, and soon, I was imagining the creepy old house in my mind – a wind rushed past my face, a tugging sensation pulled from behind my naval, and then, I was standing there, Remus and Alice by my side.

We waited for the others to arrive, joked around about how one time Brennan Smite claimed to have traveled into the scary house just to impress Alice (who was not impressed, needless to say), and then began walking down the street, a few side streets, and were standing in front of a rundown, old theatre entrance.

"It looks closed." Peter said, and James stepped forward and racked his knuckles on the door.

"Oi, anybody in there?" he called, and as he knocked for a third time, the door drifted open. He grinned. "Brilliant. It's unlocked." He stepped back. "Shall we?"

"I think we shall, Prongs." Sirius said, and he walked forward into the darkness, only whipping out his wand to mutter, "_Lumos"_, causing it to light up. James walked forward next, pulling me with him, and I pressed my feet harder against the ground in retaliation.

"I am not going in there." I blatantly stated, knowing far too well what could be lurking in the shadows of a spooky, seemingly abandoned building at nighttime.

"Oh, come on, Lily." Alice said, pushing my back, and then I was stumbling into James, and he took the opportunity to grab me and drag me in with him, his own wand illuminated.

I glared at him from under my red hair, huffed, and pulled out my own wand, saying the spell as well. The room was filled with a light, bluish glow as the seven of us walked through what must have, at some point, the main room, and Sirius headed directly to the door which surely led to the theater itself, and pressed his ear against it.

"There are people in there." He muttered under his breath, and James stepped forward to listen, too.

"Let's go, then, Padfoot." James, giving his friend a final smirk, made a grab for the handle, turning it and opening it. I gulped, gave a nervous glance at Frank, who was staring forward with pure determination, and followed in after them.

"Children?" Screeched a voice I seemed to recognize from somewhere, and I gazed upon the scene in front of me with interest. Wizards, old, middle-aged, young (though we were, by far, the youngest there), turned to stare at us as we burst through the door. Of the many heads turned, I noticed Slughorn, Dumbledore, and McGonagall among them.

"Alas," Dumbledore said, rising, his cheeks rosy as he beamed at us. "The wizards and witches I recruited under my name."

James stepped forward. "James Potter, Minister." James said, nodding respectfully to the man who was on the stage.

Minister?That's why the voice sounded familiar. The man on the stage; he was the Minister of Magic. I gazed at him – older, shorter, plumper, and with a fine, grey mustache and matching hair (though it seemed to be receding).

"Frank Longbottom." Frank announced, stepping forward. Sirius followed.

"Sirius Black." He said proudly, and a middle-aged witch with a long, velvet hat gasped.

"A Black? You brought a Black here? Albus, he's going to go run to his family now and ruin the entire organization!" She yelled, and from the stage, the Minister still fumed.

"Children, Albus? _Children?_" He cried. "We send you out on a message to recruit new people into the order, and you bring us _children?"_

Dumbledore just smiled up at him. "Yes, I do believe that is what I did."

"Excuse me," McGonagall said, standing up and placing her hands on her hips, glaring at the Minister. "I do not mean to disrespect you, Minister, but are you telling me you doubt Albus' judgment?"

The witches and wizards turned from us to the Minister, who was pulling at his collar. "N-No, of course not, Minerva." He said while coughing awkwardly. "I'm merely saying that they cannot, er, rather _should _not, be here, for they're still young, and – "

"We're all off age!" Alice proclaimed loudly, and we all nodded in agreement.

"Yes, and as legal adults, I do believe we have the given human right to make our own decisions regarding our life." Remus added, and I raised my hand.

Everyone slowly turned to me, and the Minister, still tugging at his collar nervously, said, "Um, Yes, Miss, ahh…?"

"Evans. Lily Evans." I finished for him, before speaking. "May I ask, before we go jumping into things, what exactly_ is_ this?"

"Miss Evans, always practical." Dumbledore smiled at me fondly and addressed us, as well as the rest of the people there. "This meeting is just one of the many that this organization has had in the past, and will continue to have in the future. We are the Order of the Phoenix, and we are a secret society that is fighting, ever day, against Tom Riddle."

"Tom Riddle?" James inquired, his eyebrow perking up. Dumbledore nodded.

"Yes. You may now know him as, _Lord Voldemort, _but that is merely his stage name." He said with a joking smile, and a few of us chuckled at the pun, though there was nothing funny about the Dark Lord, or the situation we were currently in.

"So, we've all been selected," Remus said slowly, as if unsure, "To be recruited into this…organization?"

"Once you graduate, of course." McGonagall said quickly, brushing a piece of hair out of her face. "And only if you wish, for if you don't, we will simply perform an _Obliviate _charm and you will have no recollection of this at all." She added.

"Of course we're all joining!" I said suddenly, the excitement at the realization of what was going on overtaking me. "If you're making an army, I want to fight!"

James' hand, squeezed tightly around mine in pride, and Dumbledore and McGonagall smiled as everyone nodded in agreement. The Minister, who had stayed silent for a few moments, sighed, and said, "Very well. Please take a seat."

And so we did.

And so, our futures began.

* * *

I finished folding my last shirt, and slowly, placed it in my trunk, on top of James' grey sweatshirt that still, somehow smelt like him; I laughed to myself, realizing I had kept it far much longer than I should have, and that, really, I never had any intention of giving it back to him. I whipped out my wand and fastened it shut, placed the piece of wood on the shelf next to my bed, and sat down on my bed, looking around at the empty dorm.

"Oh, I never knew this thing would be so heavy!" Violet said as she hoisted her own trunk onto her bed, sighing in relief when she finally let go of it. Alice, her hands on her hips as she stood in the doorway of the room, smiled.

"Who ever knew we'd be saying good bye to this place so quickly." She softly stroked a piece of her hair behind her ear and smoothed out the blue blouse she was wearing, her white, ruffled skirt swishing as she hopped onto her own bed. Macy came dancing out of the bathroom, humming happily.

"The graduation ceremony is in only an hour." She said, sighing and twirling in her pink, pleated dress and sitting on Alice's bed, next to her. "I can't believe it – our lives are finally beginning."

"Or finally ending." I mumbled sadly, and I only noticed that I was tearing up when a teardrop slid off of my nose and onto my pale yellow sundress. Violet ran over to my bed and jumped on it, hugging me, and only then did I notice that she seemed to be sniffling, too.

"Oh, Lily." Macy and Alice came onto my bed, and they, too, began crying, and we sat there, hugging and sobbing and whispering bidding words to each other, laughing, despite our tears, and crying, despite our happiness.

It was the end. Our last day here. In three hours, I would be on a train with them, leaving Hogwarts forever, and never coming back. The thought made more tears come to my eyes.

"I love you guys so much." Macy sputtered out sadly, and we all laughed and told her the same and hugged for so long that it took Jillian Thorton knocking on our door nearly a half hour later to stop us.

"I'm sorry for, er, interrupting," She said awkwardly, fidgeting uncomfortably in her red and black skirt and blouse, "But I was wondering if any of you knew when we were supposed to be down in the courtyard for the ceremony?"

"Oh, no, not at all." Violet rubbed her tear stained cheeks and stood up, brushing off her navy blue, tight, off the shoulder shirt and black, cropped Bermuda shorts. "Twenty minutes before the ceremony so we can get our robes and seating assignments."

"Oh," Jillian checked her watch, and looked back up at us. "I suppose I'll head there now then. Thank you."

Her eyes cast over mine, and she offered me a small smile, and I smiled back.

"Get over here, Jillian." I said, opening one of my arms for her to come to, and she laughed and joined our group hug for a few moments.

"I'll miss you guys," she said honestly while we all parted, and Alice offered her a friendly smile.

"We'll miss you, too. Even though you've picked rows with every single one of us before and have stolen both Lily and Violet's boyfriends." Instead of being mad at Alice's outburst, Jillian blushed and looked down, biting her lip.

"Yeah, erm…Sorry about that."

"All is forgiven." Violet threw an arm around her shoulder, and I threw one around her waist, and Alice and Macy joined us on either side as we all walked towards the Great Hall together.

Once we arrived, I was pleased to see almost every single seventh year there already – Snape, who I made unnecessary eye contact with, and who I chose to smile at, because the mood was just right, and I knew I would never see him again. Justin Weiss, who was waving at Jonathan and Marissa as they walked over to him, and they who, upon seeing us, gave us all a friendly wave. Vivian Gallid, the girl we had started the unfortunate rumor about that James had gotten pregnant at the beginning of the year, and Amos Diggory, the cute Hufflepuff that Violet had gone to the winter ball with in December. Tom Jordan, the Ravenclaw quidditch announcer, called Alice's name, and she ran to hug him while I ran to hug Zachary Felton, the Gryffindor quidditch keeper in my year. Rob, who I spotted not too far away, hugged Olivia, another Hufflepuff girl in our year, and from over his shoulder, saw me and gave a light grin. I grinned back.

McGonagall called names from where a rack of black robes sat, and Dumbledore stood next to her, patting her back as she began tearing up when Remus and Sirius and Peter and James hugged her good bye.

I went up after them, and McGonagall, sporting teal dress robes, smiled sadly at me. "Lily." She said softly, and the Marauders stepped back and allowed me to go flying into her arms in a tight hug.

"Professor." I said with a watery voice, for tears were welling up in my own eyes again as she stroked my back, hugging me back with equally as much enthusiasm and sadness.

"You were always such a pleasure, Lily. I will miss seeing your bright, smiling face in class a great deal, you know." And I merely nodded and sniffled, until Dumbledore politely tapped my shoulder.

"Am I deserving of a hug of such nature?" He asked politely, his eyes twinkling, and I peeled my arms away from McGonagall and wrapped them around the man, who stroked my red hair softly.

"Lily Evans. Brightest in her year, adored by all, and Head Girl." He paused, and then I could simply hear the smile in his voice as he said, "You should be so proud of yourself. I know I am."

And then I pulled back, smiled up at him, and said, "Thank you, Professor."

"Now, I know that this is business of which does not concern me," He said, his voice lowering to a whisper, "But I do believe your boyfriend is waiting for you."

I looked to my left, where a little while away, James stood, his hands in his black trouser pockets, white button down un-tucked, sleeves messily pushed up, and hair sticking up attractively and messily, as always.

"Thank you, sir." I said sheepishly, and I gave McGonagall one final smile before running over to James, who, as soon as I reached him, picked me up and spun me around and kissed me, all at the same time.

Cologne filled my nose, mint filled my mouth, and love filled my heart as we twirled, stupidly oblivious to the rest of the world, until finally, he set me down, and even still, his lips never left mine.

"I love you." I giggled, and he kissed me one more time, smiling.

"I love you too. Merlin, I'm never going to get tired of hearing you say that." He admitted coyly, his eyes closed, and my hands rested on the back of his neck while his own were fastened securely around my waist.

"Who'd have thought," I murmured amusedly, "That just several months ago, I would be in this very Great Hall, planning my next prank on you?" James chortled, and I continued, "_And_, that those short, seven years ago, when I had first met you on the train, and was plotting your death, that we'd be here now, friends, and dating?"

"We were never friends, Lily…" James said, his breath tickling my nose. "I had a crush on you from the first moment I saw you."

"And I hated you from the first moment I saw you." I confessed guiltily, and James laughed and pressed his forehead against mine.

"But brilliant, little eleven year old James knew that one day, you'd fall for him, just as hard as he had fallen for you."

"Of course he did." I pressed my lips to his once more, and this time, we took no shame in kissing, for everyone around us was too busy and too sad and too happy and too occupied to care about a silly couple kissing and giggling amidst an ocean of a hundred other students with a hundred different stories to tell.

The butterflies in my stomach were in full flutter as James whispered words of sweet nothing into my ears, and eventually, his lips formed a question against the skin there that made me think.

"What now?"

I knew what he meant – the question was greater and more significant and more meaningful than just those two words. After a moment, I said, "I don't know."

"What about the future?" he asked, pulling his head back to look down at me with his hazel eyes. Nine colors. I counted them again, and smiled when he childishly gave an innocent, "I'm scared."

"Don't be." I kissed him. "The future looks bright, James. And as long as I have you, and you have me, everything will be perfect."

His lips curved upwards in a smile, and he challenged me, just as always. "Well, let's just _say _that the future doesn't look bright. It doesn't look like anything – it's blank, and we get to make it. What then?"

I smiled, intertwined his hand with mine, and said. "That's a good question. I suppose…" And I started pulling him forward, for the graduation ceremony was about to begin, and so was our future together, and there was a grin on my lips as I finished with a blissful, "It's a mystery."

_**A/N Fin ~**_

_**Oh my goodness, it's finished. I don't even know what to do right now. I suppose I'll cry about it later, because right now, I'm smiling and eager to post this and change my status from "in progress" to "complete."**_

_**I'll start off with musical inspiration, of course. **_

_**Hazy – Rosi Golan ft. William Fitzsimmons. This was listened to when James and Lily share their moments, and Macy and Remus on the dance floor.**_

**_Kiss Me - Ed Sheeran. "I love you." Scene_**

_**Big Bird in a Small Cage – Patrick Watson. Beginning of the story and the lake scene. Great song.**_

_**And, finally, at the mushy, corny, cliché ending, Sigh No More – Mumford & Sons. This song is perfect, I think, for the end to this story. Look at the lyrics, listen to the song, and fall in love with it. Yes, that is a direct command.**_

**_Before I get yelled at, IM SORRY. I want Sirius and Violet to be happy together, but…I'm sorry. At least Macy and Remus are finally better though and _they're_ happy! :D_**

**_And about the Dumbledore's army thing - if you pay attention, you'll notice that all the names on the list are of people from Hogwarts that Dumbledore, himself, recruited, at the courtesy of the Minister. They're a sort of subgroup of the order. This portion of the Order of the Phoenix is just the list of Dumbledore's recruits, not the whole order, so the fact that Harry had his own 'Dumbledore's army' in fifth year is merely a coincidence._**

**_I started a Formspring account where I'll answer questions related to Fanfction, unlike my personal Formspring. Here I'll do requests for passages from this story or my other fanfictions in different POVs, or will answer questions you have. Go check it out! The link's on my profile._**

_**One million thank you's to the lot of you that have read this, favorited it, alerted it, reviewed it, requested it to friends,, everything. I love and appreciate you guys so, so much, and could have never done this without you.**_

_**I've just posted my new story, "How to fall in love in 97 days". It'd mean a lot for you to check it out and leave me some feedback. Thank you! :D**_

_**Thank you all, so, so much.**_

_**I truly love you guys. :')**_

_**LOL for lots of love,**_

_**Roxalicous**_


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